How much food produced globally is wasted – why?

Statistics from last year 2024/25.

Waste: Approximately 33% (about 2.5 billion tonnes) of all food produced globally for human consumption is lost or wasted annually.

This wasted food accounts for 8–10% of total greenhouse gas emissions and, if it were a country, would be the third-largest emitter. Over 60% of this waste occurs at the household level.
UNEP – UN Environment Programme +7

Key Global Food Facts

• Total Volume: Estimates range from 1.3 billion to 2.5 billion tonnes of food wasted annually.
• Percentage: Around 30% to 40% of all food produced is lost or wasted.
• Source of Waste: Households are responsible for the majority of waste (60%), followed by food services (28%) and retail (12%).
• Most Wasted Foods: Fruits, vegetables, roots, and tubers have the highest wastage rates.
• Impact: Food waste uses 28% of the world’s agricultural area and wastes roughly 45 trillion gallons of water.
• Hunger Correlation: The food wasted could feed approximately 3 billion people, which is more than enough to nourish the entire global population.

Food Loss vs. Food Waste

Food Loss: Occurs from harvest up to, but not including, the retail stage (e.g., spoilage during transport, poor storage).
Food Waste: Occurs at the retail and consumer levels, such as households, restaurants, and supermarkets.
food.ec.europa.eu
food.ec.europa.eu +2

Regional and Economic Impact

While developed nations often waste more at the consumer level, developing nations often experience higher food loss during production and transport due to a lack of cold chain technology. The economic value of this wasted food is estimated to be close to $940 billion each year.

Bottom line: Food Facts * There is enough food produced in the world to feed everyone. … * One third of all food produced is lost or wasted –around 1.3 billion tonnes.

UNEP – UN Environment Programme
23 Oct 2025 — With up to 783 million people in the world still facing hunger and more than 3.1 billion people in the world are unable to afford a healthy diet, it is essential.

UNEP – UN Environment Programme
Food Waste – European Commission’s Food Safety

UNEP – UN Environment Programme
Food Waste Facts
11 Jan 2024 — Food statistics vary by country, but according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) on a global scale at  least one third of food is wasted or lost every year. Twice the size of previous estimates

26 Mar 2021 — Some 931 million tonnes of food goes to waste each year, with between 8-10% of global carbon emissions linked to unconsumed produce, according to a UN report. A…

The World Economic Forum

Top 10 Food Waste Facts You Need to Know in 2025 – City Harvest
17 Mar 2025 — 1. 1.3 billion tonnes of food are wasted globally each year. The staggering amount of food wasted could feed approximately 3 billion people. cityharvest.org.uk

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