Cairo, Egypt - In order to raise awareness of the issue of food waste in Egypt, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) launched an awareness campaign with the Egyptian Food Bank against food waste, in coordination and cooperation with the Unit for Monitoring Loss and Waste in Agricultural Products at the Agricultural Economics Research Institute, affiliated to the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation (MALR), in light of the government's readiness to implement a new law to reduce food loss and waste, after studying and discussing it in the Egyptian Parliament.

Awareness campaigns and initiatives at the governorate level to encourage rational consumption of food.

The campaign began with the beginning of the month of Ramadan under the slogan “30 Advice in 30 Days” to raise awareness by publishing daily tips on social media on how to optimally consume food and deal with the purchasing habits of Egyptians during the holy month, as this step comes within the framework of the efforts of the organization and the Egyptian Food Bank in reducing food waste, after studies proved that the average volume of food waste per capita in Egypt is about 91 kilograms of food annually, according to estimates by the National Center for Social and Criminal Research. According to the same authority, the percentage of food wasted on special occasions, holidays and festivals is increasing; At least 60 % of edible foods are discarded, and in a study by (FAO), about 50 % of vegetables and fruits, 40 % of fish and 30 % of milk and wheat are wasted each year in Egypt.

On global level, Food loss and waste pervades all global food and agricultural systems. According to FAO, about 931 million tons (or 17 %) of food available to consumers was dumped in household waste, restaurants, retailers, etc. in 2019. About 10 percent were disposed of it was lost by households, while food service providers and retail outlets squandered about 5% and 2%, respectively. In the same year. During the harvest season, the FAO revealed that 14% of the food produced globally; It is wasted and lost during the post-harvest production phase.

Al-Waer: The rate of food loss and waste is 250 kg per person every year in the Near East and North Africa

“It is estimated that food loss and waste in the Near East and North Africa region amounts to about 250 kg per capita, representing more than 60 billion US dollars annually, which makes the economic, social, and environmental repercussions serious for a region that depends largely on global food imports, has limited capacities to increase food production and suffers from scarcity of water and arable land. Food stuff, a third of it is wasted at the consumer level” said Abdel Hakim El Waer, Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative of FAO in the Near East and North Africa region.

Nasr El-Din Hajj: At a time when food needs are increasing, the rates of food loss and waste will increase.

For his part, Nasr El-Din Haj El-Amin, FAO Representative in Egypt, said: “The rapid growth of the population in addition to limited water resources and arable land is putting pressure on the Egyptian rural and urban food systems in terms of quantity and in terms of changing food tastes towards more valuable and perishable vegetables and fruits”.

He added: "At a time when food needs are increasing in Egypt, the rates of food loss and waste are increasing. The loss and waste of vegetables and fruits represents 45-55 percent of the annual production, as the basic data of one of FAO projects in this field estimates that the percentage of quantitative loss in the grape crop in Egypt is estimated at more than 45 percent, and the percentage increases to more than 50 percent for the tomato crop, in the production, retail and wholesale markets in the value chain alone, in addition to a significant loss on the level of product quality”.

Mohsen Sarhan: We are interested in spreading the culture of responsible consumption and changing bad habits for the sake of future generations in order to preserve resources.

Mohsen Sarhan, CEO of the Egyptian Food Bank, said that cooperation with the FAO is in line with our strategy towards combating food waste, especially by launching a campaign against waste in the month of Ramadan due to the high consumption witnessed in the Arab countries, explaining that the organization was aware of the great experience of the food bank that operates. In the field of food security for 15 years, food waste has been at the center of the Bank’s work since its inception, through our cooperation with 6000 partner associations that serve as the Bank’s arms at the level of the Republic, and the Food Bank’s possession of a strong network of volunteers, numbering up to 40 thousand volunteers at the level of the Republic, This makes the Bank's activities related to food waste control more effective and impactful to the ability to expand its reach.

Sarhan added that he seeks, through the new partnership, to spread the culture of responsible consumption and promote changing bad habits for the sake of future generations in order to preserve resources, supporting the trend towards issuing a new law against food waste to hold the concerned parties accountable, whether negatively or positively, and reduce the percentage of waste. Year after year, and work to provide healthy food to a larger number of deserving people, calling for the need for the submitted draft law to include tax incentives for all those who combat the phenomenon.

An overview of the draft law was presented by Representative Amira Saber, member of the Coordination of Youth of Parties and Politicians, during the breakfast ceremony organized by FAO in cooperation with the Egyptian Food Bank in the context of the awareness campaign in the presence of many government officials, international organizations, and international community organizations. Al-Masry highlighted how to take advantage of wasted food by directing the untouched surplus from breakfast to the neediest groups, after completing its packaging and packaging in a professional manner that ensures compliance with all standards of security and food safety.

The FAO had implemented a project to Food Loss and Waste Reduction and Value Chain Development for Food Security in Egypt, funded by the Italian Agency for Development and Cooperation, which lasted for several years in cooperation with MALR, relying on the approach of developing the food value chain to reduce food loss and waste Focusing on the post-harvest, processing and marketing stages, and promoting the adoption of value chains.

Photos Album