Food Waste Habits of Households in Singapore

The 2015 Electrolux Food Waste At Home Survey revealed the food waste habits of households in Singapore. The survey was conducted by Electrolux based on 1,000 respondents from 18-65 years old.

Some of the key findings show that:

77% of Singaporeans regularly waste food at home, with almost a third refusing to eat leftovers.

41% of Singaporeans only think about food waste occasionally despite households contributing to the 788,600 tonnes of food waste generated in Singapore each year.

The top five reasons why food is wasted at homes:

1. Preparing too much food / taking too much food on your plate (51%)
2. Forgotten about food: out-of-date food at the back of their fridge because they just can’t see it (48%)
3. Catering for fussy eaters (31%)
4. Households not liking leftovers (23%)
5. Rarely eating together as a family (11%)

The most common items thrown away each week:

1. Cooked rice (51%)
2. Vegetables/salad (49%)
3. Cooked meat/fish (45%)

The survey was timed to kickstart #happyplatesg, a six-week community initiative to raise awareness of food waste in Singapore, one plate at a time. Through this, Electrolux intends to rally the help of Singaporeans to support at least 1,000 local families in need through the campaign’s beneficiary, The Food Bank Singapore.

Source and image credit: Electrolux Asia Pacific

How do you solve a problem like food waste?

This article is contributed by Jean Chua.

Here are the staggering statistics: As much as one-third of food produced globally for our dining tables is lost or wasted, according to the World Bank.

Developing countries lose an average of 120 to 220 kilogrammes of food per person per year, which means that even those in regions ridden with malnutrition, such as South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, lose as many as 400 to 500 kilocalories per person, every day.

No matter how you look at it, that’s a lot of grub simply being thrown away. Food waste – when produce makes it to the end of the supply chain but doesn’t get eaten – is a huge problem that contributes to billions of tonnes of greenhouse gases (the chief culprit behind global warming) and needlessly consumes precious land and water resources. Read more

How Much Food Do You Waste In Singapore?

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) celebrates World Food Day each year on 16 October. This year, we would like to remember World Food Day by spreading awareness and action on food waste reduction.

Together with Helpling, an online platform that connects you to cleaners, we have created this infographic to show you how much food we waste in Singapore.

Now that you understand how much food we waste in Singapore, the next step is for you to play a part in reducing food waste in your daily life and at home. Simply follow the 8 tips below and start reducing food waste!

1) Learn About Food Sources

Learn about where your food comes from and understand how farmers toil to produce your food. This would help you better appreciate the food you eat and thus waste less food.

2) Grow Your Own Food

Grow your own food in Singapore to better appreciate your food and waste less. This would also help to reduce the food wastage during transportation and storage, the resources spent, and carbon emissions generated from importing food.

3) Plan What To Buy

Before you go shopping for food, plan what to buy using a shopping list. This would help you avoid buying more food than you need.

4) Store And Handle Food Properly

Store and handle your food properly at home to help you keep food longer without spoilage, and thus reduce food wastage.

5) Cook And Order Just Enough

Choose the right food portions and cook just enough food. Also order just enough food, thus avoiding food waste and saving money.

6) Cook Your Leftover Food

Keep and cook your leftover food instead of throwing them away, thus helping to reduce food wastage at home.

7) Start Food Composting

Try composting your fruit and vegetable scraps at home or in the community garden, and produce compost for gardening.

8) Make Garbage Enzyme

Make garbage enzyme from your fruit and vegetable scraps, and use it for cleaning purposes.

Finally, sign the pledge to Save Food Cut Waste in Singapore, and share this post with your friends and encourage them to reduce food waste together!

Infographic credit: Helpling