Wasteful food habits cited by UN as among top reasons why 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted each year worldwide

DuPont, one of the leading market-driven science companies, is commemorating World Environment Day themed ‘Think.Eat.Save‘ and addressing the challenge with its innovative science-based products and solutions that helps minimize food wastage. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), every year 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted.

“We believe in collaboration. No one company can do it alone. Hence we urge leaders from across government, business and non-profit organizations to help solve the greatest challenge of tomorrow, feeding 9 billion people. We are closely looking at increased agricultural output, healthy and more nutritious food and food security,” said Amin Khayyal, General Manager, DuPont, United Arab Emirates.

In the Middle East, extreme heat presents an additional challenge to keep produce fresh. Moreover, extended shelf life is extremely important in the region where food has to be imported before it reaches consumers. DuPont works with local food companies to develop tougher and lighter packages based on DuPont^TM Surlyn® reducing leaks that cause food to spoil, and in developing products with ingredients like enzymes, which keep bread, cakes, or milk fresher longer. 

“DuPont is servicing with one of the leading airlines to apply the company’s science and know-how to help improve food transport technologies, which will better protect perishable shipments. This is crucial as imports account for majority of food consumption in the Middle East, with the GCC region alone importing almost 70 per cent of food requirements,” he added.

A recent survey conducted by YouGov for Al Aan TV in the UAE found that 78 per cent of respondents throw food away every week. Consumers obviously need to be more aware of the consequences of food wastage. “It is our responsibility to make concerted efforts to raise awareness and to help minimize food waste, especially as we know 1 in every 7 people in the world go to bed hungry and more than 20,000 children under the age of 5 die daily from hunger,” added Mr. Khayyal.

DuPont has commissioned the Global Food Security Index, developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit, measuring the drivers of food security in 105 countries. DuPont has also undertaken extensive research to understand why food is wasted at different levels of the food value chain, taking cue from a comprehensive study by UN’s FAO that broke food loss and waste down into five areas: agricultural production; postharvest handling and storage; processing; distribution; and consumption, which includes the waste and loss in homes. DuPont has been collaborating with customers—farmers, producers, processors throughout the food value chain—as part of a long-term commitment to develop innovative science-based solutions to reduce food waste worldwide.