Consumption
Food consumption refers to the amount of food available for human consumption. Actual food consumption may be lower than the quantity of food available, depending on the magnitude of wastage and loss of food in the household (e.g. during storage or in preparation and cooking).
Food waste at the consumer level, including fish and fish products occurs in both industrialized and developing countries. In industrialized countries, an estimated 222 million tonnes of food is wasted per annum. By comparison, the annual food production of sub-Saharan Africa is only slightly larger, netting at 230 million tonnes.
Per capita food waste by consumers in Europe and North America is estimated to be 95-115 kg/year, while in sub-Saharan Africa and South/South-East Asia it is only 6-11 kg/year.
Food waste, if left rotting in landfills, produces substantial quantities of methane, a gas with 25 times more global warming potential than carbon dioxide (CO2). This does not include the fossil fuels used for the production of wasted food, which also has a direct impact on climate change.
Loss Scenarios
Food waste at the consumer level, including fish and fish products, occurs in both industrialized and developing countries.