Food for the Future

According to statistics, between 30% and 50% or 1.2-2bn tonnes of food produced around the world never makes it on to a plate. This clearly shows the importance of making sure food wastage can be kept to a minimum.

 

With the increasing popularity of the smart phones, many smartphone applications have been created to help solve the problem of food wastage. One such example is the LeftoverSwap application, a highly controversial online marketplace for left over food. This application ables users to post a photo and description of their unwanted leftovers for other users to see. Other users around the same area can then trade or simply take the remaining food.

 

However, applications like this can pose hygiene risks and people may have a stigma for leftover food, leading to reluctance to consume the unwanted food.

 

Another problem in developing countries is the post harvest food loss. After harvestation, much of food is destroyed by insects and pests during storage. This accounts to more than 20% of the food loss in Africa. An remedy to this will be to import food preservation techniques from developed countries to developing countries.