Published:  08:01 AM, 22 February 2024

Curtailing waste can strengthen food security: Agriculture Minister

Curtailing waste can strengthen food security: Agriculture Minister
 
Agriculture Minister Dr. Md. Abdus Shahid has said that 30% food gets wasted while farming and processing. Food security can be further strengthened if this waste can be curtailed, he further said.

Dr. Md. Abdus Shahid made the above remarks on Wednesday in Colombo, Sri Lanka while speaking at a conference of Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

While winter harvests offer temporary relief from rising prices, a silent storm brews in the form of rampant food waste, threatening the very security of our food systems and pushing prices back up. But there is a shield to be forged: Minimizing waste at every stage, from field to fork.

In the World Population Review index, Bangladesh stands at the 14th position in vegetable production and third in rice production. However, the per capita waste is substantial at 65kg per year, a considerable figure that has the potential to alleviate concerns about lingering food insecurity in the country.

The issue of food waste is a worldwide concern, with one-third of the food produced globally for human consumption going to waste. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN estimates a staggering 1.3 billion tons of food, valued at nearly a trillion US dollars, is wasted on a global scale. Nations around the globe are individually tackling the challenge of food waste in pursuit of the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG). Target 12.3 of this goal aims to reduce food loss and waste by half by 2030.

Bangladesh has also initiated several projects to minimize food waste. However, the cumulative impact of these projects is anticipated to fall considerably short of achieving the 2030 SDG target.

A staggering 5 million tons of food are lost between farm and kitchen each year in Bangladesh, while households contribute over 10 million tons to this feast of waste. Together, a shocking 15.7 million tons of food disappear annually, according to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA).

However, an analysis of the various projects under the agriculture and food ministries reveals that only 3.35% of the total wastage can be prevented if the government's ongoing initiatives to reduce post-production crop damage and food wastage are fully implemented.

Globally, 8% of food is lost on farms, 14% between the farm gate and retail sector, 17% at retail food service providers and in private homes.
Under the ministries of Agriculture and Food, there are currently eight ongoing projects aimed at enhancing food management, including the expansion of storage capacity and the reduction of post-harvest losses.

Even with the successful implementation of these projects, the impact of reducing food waste is anticipated to be marginal and it will likely take a minimum of 2-6 years to observe tangible benefits.

Regrettably, there is a lack of discernible government initiatives focusing on diminishing table wastage through public awareness campaigns.
The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) has been unable to update progress review indicators for the past nine years, despite Bangladesh's commitment to halving food waste by 2030 as part of the SDG.

Department of Agriculture officials highlight the urgency for Bangladesh to address post-production crop damage and reduce table wastage in the aftermath of the pandemic and climate change-induced disruptions worldwide.

Notably, projects like the steam plants being developed by Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) and Barind Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA) in Savar, Dhaka, with an investment of Tk50 crore, aim to utilize steam heat technology to cut post-harvest losses.

These plants, with a yearly treatment capacity of 35,000 tons of mangoes and other agricultural products, are expected to increase product shelf life, but the implementation of the projects and commencing operations will take at least six more months.

Md Mahbubey Alam, the former project director of the BADC project, told journalists, "The project is slated for completion by the upcoming June, allowing us to commence the application of steam heat technology in agricultural products. This initiative will contribute to minimizing post-harvest losses and facilitate export endeavours."

BINA has initiated another project, the Gamma E-Radiation Centre costing Tk115 crore. This technology, planned for 2.5 lakh tons of agricultural products and fruits annually, is currently undergoing the tender process for machinery and infrastructure construction, expected to conclude in at least two years.

Implementing radiation technology across various products, including onions, potatoes, vegetables, mangoes, bananas, litchis, spices, fish, and dry fish, can potentially cut post-harvest losses, minimizing wastage by about 53 thousand tons annually.

BINA's research data indicates that in Bangladesh, post-harvest losses account for 20-25% in onions, 30-35% in mangoes, 25-30% in bananas, papayas, guavas, and litchis, 8-9% in rice, 6-7% in pulses, 10% in potatoes, and 5.7% in ginger. The combined annual production of these 10 products is 52.87 million tons, resulting in a post-harvest loss of 5.13 million tons.

Dr Mirza Mofazzal Islam, Director General of BINA, told reporters, "Despite its significance, it took three years to initiate the construction of the Gamma E-Radiation Centre. I am optimistic that we will complete it within the next two years."






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