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Food waste in primary production in the UK Share 25th July 2019

Bogweevil

Member
Main findings
The central estimate for the total amount of food surplus and waste is 3.6 million tonnes per annum, or 7.2% of all food harvested. If this wasted and surplus food had been sold at market values, it would have had a value of £1.2 billion. Some small part of this value is recovered through sales for animal feed.
The food waste component of the above is estimated at 1.6 million tonnes per annum, or 3.2% of all food harvested. When clustered into product types, horticultural crops make up 54% of the total, cereals 30%, livestock 8% and milk 8%.
The amount of surplus food – that is material that was at risk of becoming waste, but goes instead for redistribution, animal feed, or to become bio-based materials – is estimated at an additional 2.0 million tonnes per annum (4.0% of all food harvested).

 
Where is the definition of waste?

Food into landfill?

Food not harvested?

Even "food left to rot in the fields", as described in the daily mail, has a value due to its contribution to soil.

It would be more useful to look at what proportion of food leaves the farm but never finds a mouth.
 

How is your SFI 24 application progressing?

  • havn't been invited to apply

    Votes: 28 35.9%
  • have been invited to apply

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  • applied but not yet accepted

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  • agreement up and running

    Votes: 8 10.3%

Webinar: Expanded Sustainable Farming Incentive offer 2024 -26th Sept

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On Thursday 26th September, we’re holding a webinar for farmers to go through the guidance, actions and detail for the expanded Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) offer. This was planned for end of May, but had to be delayed due to the general election. We apologise about that.

Farming and Countryside Programme Director, Janet Hughes will be joined by policy leads working on SFI, and colleagues from the Rural Payment Agency and Catchment Sensitive Farming.

This webinar will be...
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