Hope for on-farm food waste to feed people first not alternative markets

Foodbank Australia and End Food Waste Australia want a hierarchy of on-farm food waste outcomes to be utilised, to help curb Australian food poverty.

Foodbank Australia chief operating officer Sarah Pennell respected the many avenues available for on-farm food waste but believed precious resources were being wasted to produce food which never reached people in need.

"There are all sorts which can be done to ensure food waste does not go to landfill but unfortunately not all of them go to feeding people and we want to see this as the first place it reaches," she said.

"When we think about the resources used to produce that food in the first place, it really should feed people first."

About 30 per cent of all primary produce food waste and 70pc of all food, is perfectly edible.

On-farm food waste generally comes from over production and strict specifications and Ms Pennell said the term wastage, did not make it any less useful for people.

"It is wasted because of surplus production, demand on the market or it is out of specification. These factors make no difference to eating quality but means it will not go to market," she said.

This means, it's perfect for the food relief sector to help those who would otherwise not eat.

According to Ms Pennell, weather unpredictability meant on-farm food waste would be a constant, particularly when trying to meet market specifications.

"This means, this product will always be available but we want to see it go to the best possible alternative use," she said.

End Food Waste Australia's Melissa Smith believed curbing on-farm food waste was good for industries through improved efficiencies, getting more crop to market and better bang-for-buck with inputs.

"There are huge amounts of losses. Global food waste has a higher impact than the global aviation industry," she said.

In Australia, the environmental footprint of food waste is massive, with 7.6 million tonnes wasted each year.

Half of it is fresh produce and a land mass the size of Vic is wasted every year to produce food which is never eaten.

"The most intensive part of the food production system is food waste because everything that goes into producing the food, is wasted," Ms Smith said.

Australia has a goal to halve food waste by 2030 and 22pc of all waste is happening in the production stage.

In cropping and animal production, it is much less, but processing improvements needed to be made, according to Ms Smith.

"We want to do a lot more work int hat space. The highest meat wastage is by the consumer," she said.

"There are also serious issues within the cold chain, which is impacting food usage in the home and its overall shelf-life."