Children are dying of hunger while we throw away food

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“I would like to reassure those in the world who are dying of hunger: here, we eat for you.”, This ironic statement came from French comedian Coluche, in 1986. Three decades later, this quotation really needs to be updated, as the situation has become even worse. We still eat massive quantities while others are dying of hunger, but, on top of that, we also waste an incredible amount of food.

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Several studies have been carried out assessing the quantity of food that is needlessly thrown away worldwide. The results are alarming. According to a British report, as much as one third of the food that is produced globally ends up in our dustbins every year, even though it is perfectly edible. These figures have been corroborated in the United States, where it is estimated that, in North America, up to 40% of edible food is wasted annually. In Europe, this corresponds to 90 million tonnes of food thrown away each year almost 200 kg per person!

The reasons for such waste can be seen at different stages of the food chain. Right from the selection stage, the producer rules out a large quantity of produce purely on aesthetic grounds, as it is visually less appealing, even though it is absolutely fine in all other respects. Next, not only do food shops encourage consumption with their “two for one” style offers, which encourage waste, but the hotel and catering sectors are also involved, especially as they throw away large quantities of food that is still edible. Finally, the dates on packaging are often poorly understood by many consumers, who prematurely throw away food when it is still safe to eat.

This waste is obviously an immense loss in economic terms, yet this is nothing compared to the ethical and human considerations involved. In fact, while we are wasting 30% of the available food each year, a billion people, or one out of every eight people on earth, suffer from hunger.

If the fact that people still die of hunger in the 21st century is already deplorable in itself, the thought that this tragedy exists alongside an outrageous waste of food makes the situation even more repugnant. Consider this fact: the amount of food wasted in Italy alone would feed Ethiopia.

Is there anything that attacks the rights of the child in a more vicious and cruel way than hunger? It is only when children see their right to life and health guaranteed that they can ever hope to have access to an education and to the freedoms that the international community recognises. Yet, if somebody is suffering from hunger and nearly dying, even those basic rights necessary for other rights to be exercised are meaningless, and human dignity and equality cannot exist. The French priest Abbé Pierre recognised that “freedom rights are nothing but a mockery on empty stomachs”, and before him, Franklin Roosevelt argued that “the first human right is freedom from hunger”.

We can certainly argue that there has always been, and sadly probably always will be, disparity regarding access to food. Yet this would be to forget the first article of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that all human beings should “act toward one another in a spirit of brotherhood”. An astonishing waste of food in privileged parts of the world is neither brotherly nor caring. While it is definitely the duty of states to take measures to curb food wastage, we also have a moral obligation to understand the true value of a decent meal and to act responsibly.

Written by : Valentine Delarze

Reviewed by: Marie Odile Coly

Translated by: Sharon Rees

Proofread by: Sam Hartburn

Sources:
www.nietgenoeg.be
http://www.rts.ch/info/monde/6574941-le-gaspillage-alimentaire-couterait-400-milliards-de-francs-chaque-annee.html
http://modernfarmer.com/2013/09/next-food-revolution-youre-eating/
http://discardstudies.com/2014/01/23/against-awareness-for-scale-garbage-is-infrastructure-not-behavior/
http://www.euractiv.com/video/food-waste-cutting-losses-along-supply-chain-307730www.eurachttp://www.euractiv.com/cap/parliament-seeks-slash-food-waste-news-510225tiv.com/video/food-waste-prevention-whats-packaging-got-do-it-310920
http://www.euractiv.com/specialreport-prods-green-planet/cutting-food-waste-greening-diet-news-513731
Constitutional Court of South Africa, Government of South Africa v. Grootboom and others 4 October 2000
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Social and Economic Rights Action Center, Center for Economic and Social Rights v. Nigeria (case Ogoni) 13 October 2001, §65