Though food waste is a problem throughout the U.S and the world, the issue especially hits home for people in the Midwest.
In a country where food is the largest single source of waste, 40 percent of the U.S food supply is never consumed, according to research funded by the National Institute of Health.
Landfills are overflowing from food thrown out by schools, restaurants, stores and homes. Yet, millions of Americans don’t get enough to eat each day. There is something wrong with this picture.
According to the Iowa Waste Reduction Center, there has been a 62% increase of food waste disposal in Iowa landfills of 62% from 1998-2011. Research from the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality finds that food comprises 16.64% of Nebraska’s municipal waste stream.
It is clear that the rate which food is thrown out by citizens of the Midwest is spiraling out of control. One such advocate for Midwestern governments to spread a movement for a greener earth (and, as a result, fuller mouths), is Jack Chappelle.
Chappelle is a solid waste consultant with Engineering Solutions and Designs whose job is to search through the garbage in local landfills and find out what it contains. Governments hire him and his company to do this.
The conclusion he has come to through searching landfills in places like Kansas City and Lincoln is that Midwestern cities need to encourage the initiative to keep food out of landfills, where they make up 20% of the waste, according to the U.S Environmental Protection Agency.
“From an economics perspective if you don’t throw as much away, the cells don’t fill up as fast so you’re not spending as much money in the operation of the landfill,” Chappelle told The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting. “It’s directly a cost benefit relationship.”
Chapelle’s work indicates just how much the Midwest could improve in food conservation. Forty-nine million Americans have trouble putting food on the table, according to the U.S Department of Agriculture. This problem could be countered if governments went to greater lengths to spread the message and encourage citizens to take home leftovers or finish off food before it goes bad.
Various Midwestern organizations are fighting against the trend of food waste in the Midwest and across America. Illinois State University has teamed up with Midwest Fiber to convert millions of pounds of rotten food into compost. People are being exposed to just how damaging uneaten food in landfills can be to the environment, but there is more that the leadership can do to eliminate food waste.
Everyday people should counter this issue, too. Citizens across the Midwest and America can limit their shopping lists to items they really need, avoid impulse buys and plan out their meals ahead of time. Americans should also do a better job at monitoring the age of certain food items and keep up with expiration dates. Donating what one doesn’t need is also a practical method to decrease food waste. Food kitchens will gladly accept contributions for those in need.
These are only a few ways that food waste can be prevented by society. If the media, governments, and people throughout the Midwest, the country and the world would work together to spread the message against ill usage of food, then the air would be cleaner, the landfills smaller, and the stomachs of millions across the globe fuller in a world in increasing need of adequate food supply for its population.