The opening of the winter campaign of Restos du Coeur and the upcoming weekend collection by the Food Bank highlight a situation of poverty and distress for a segment of the population.
But the generosity shown during these occasions should not make us forget that, while many suffer, others are indulging in waste!
And for good reason: every year in France, 10 million tons of food that could be consumed by humans are lost, accounting for 18% of food production.
The equivalent of 9 meals per day for the 12% of French people facing food insecurity (source: Ademe).
These losses—which are estimated to cost 16 billion euros per year in France with a carbon impact of more than 15 million tons of CO2—occur all along the food chain: 4% of volumes are lost at the production stage, 4.5% during processing, 3.3% in distribution, and 7% on the consumer side.
Some foods are lost as soon as their production, due to exceeding fishing quotas or non-compliance with sizing standards, and during their processing. Others are wasted at the time of distribution or consumption.
