Five spooky facts about food waste that will frighten you

According to major supermarkets, Halloween pumpkin sales are on the way up in Australia. But before you bin that perfectly good pumpkin, consider these scary facts about food wastage:

1. Australians throw away 20% of the food we purchase – that’s one in every five bags of groceries we buy
2. Australians waste 345 kilograms of food per household each year – that’s the same as three average size fridges
3. Food waste makes up about 40% of the total rubbish in our household garbage bins
4. The average Australian household throws away $1,036 worth of food annually – that’s enough to feed the average household for over a month
5. If you add up all the food Australia wastes each year it would be enough to fill 450,000 garbage trucks

(Source: foodwise.com.au)

When you think that food waste is a major source of greenhouse gases, these frightening facts are enough to make you want to scream. And it gets worse. Every day, useable food is thrown away by shops and supermarkets, often because it is close to its sell-by dates or because the fruit and vegetables don’t look appealing enough to buy.

One young Queensland woman is determined to do something to help solve the problem. Monica Davis, 20, from Brisbane has developed a solution to cut waste and lower food costs for charities and consumers.

It’s a smartphone app called Rumbl. Rumbl provides a connecting hub for food retailers, customers and charities. Near the close of the business day, food retailers can post any quality, unsold food on the app. Customers and charities in the area are notified of surplus food for sale.

Rumbl seamlessly connects retailers who have surplus food, to customers who want it. And, by distributing excess food, it’s helping to reduce our environmental footprint. Click. Eat. Save. What could be easier?

Monica was a finalist in this year’s BASF Creator Space event, held in partnership with the Foundation for Young Australians, as part of our 150^th anniversary. At BASF, we want to help tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges, including ensuring there is enough quality food for our growing population. We think Monica’s is a brilliant idea, and some serious food for thought. You can check it out at www.rumbl.com.au.

Find out more about how BASF is connecting people and ideas around the globe through Creator Space.