The Environmental Impact of Food Waste - Methane, Composting, and More

Food waste is something we talk a lot about in the eco world and rightfully so. It is not only a huge waste of money and resources, but it is extremely detrimental to the planet. Honestly, I don't think people know just how damaging food waste is; from the release of methane to the amount of landfill space being occupied and much more.

Let's dive in!

Every day in the US, the equivalent of 1 pound of food per person is wasted. This is about 30-40% of our food supply as well as accounting for nearly a quarter of all materials we throw away. Now, just to keep things clear, these numbers are not just what households are throwing away but also grocery stores and restaurants. That being said, the amount we throw away as individuals is still astronomical and equates to around $1500 being thrown away every year per family of four. This food ending up in our landfills creates methane gas which is about 80x worse for the environment than CO2. Estimates show that we could cut out global greenhouse gas emissions by 6-8% if we quit wasting food. In the US alone, food waste methane production is equivalent to 32.6 million cars with their CO2 emissions. 

Food is the largest single category of material placed in our landfills. And if you're like me and wondering how long we have to go until our landfills run out, you can check out this video here. Is there supposed to be a link here?? Our landfills are the 3rd largest source of human-created methane emissions in the US which equates to roughly 14.1% of our emissions in 2017.  

I think something that isn't talked about enough is the wasted energy, time, manpower, money, and more resources that go into creating this food. Someone planted the seeds to grow your tomatoes. Someone else fertilized them. Someone else harvested them. Water was used to grow them. Gas was used to transport them. The energy was used to store them properly on the shelves. We focus so much on the end game, which makes sense, but we need to also acknowledge the waste that is created by growing our food, too. 

If all of this doesn't encourage you to reduce your personal food waste, maybe the money will. As we already discussed, it's around $1500 wasted every year per family of 4 or around $375 per person. In the US for consumers, farmers, and businesses combined, we waste $218 billion (yes, with a B) on food waste. And that's just the value of the food, not to mention the hefty bill of its disposal. Even as consumers, we have a trash bill. 

Of course, we can't go without talking about water usage, especially as someone who currently lives in the desert. 70% of the water used throughout the whole world is used for agriculture. So, wasted food = wasted water. Not to mention, not all foods have equal carbon, water, and other resource footprints. For example, every pound of beef you throw away is like throwing away 25,000 liters of water and every glass of milk equals 1,000 liters of water. 

Where does the methane go then?

I had someone comment on a recent Instagram post asking about what happens to methane. If I send a pumpkin to the landfill, it breaks down and causes methane gas release. We all know this. But if we eat the pumpkin or compost it, does the methane go somewhere else or does it just never get created in the first place? If you are a scientist and can explain this better than I can, please let us know down below, but here is my simple explanation:

Methane is produced when organic matter breaks down. So, when we send potatoes or lettuce or any food waste to the landfill, it breaks down, and in turn, creates methane. Methane also occurs during digestion (yes, farts) as well as harvesting oil and coal (because oil and coal are organic matter that had broken down millions of years ago, they are essentially methane and carbon stores). Here is a nice chart that breaks down CA Methane Emissions from 2017 showing that the largest emitters of methane are landfills, the dairy industry, and other livestock.

So, if we don't send our food to the landfill, we eat the food and as we digest it, we do produce some methane. But, let's look at this chart again. The landfill accounts for 21% of methane while our wastewater only accounts for 3% meaning the more we eat vs send to landfill, the better. 

Doesn't that mean the breakdown of food in compost creates methane? No! And this is why composting is one of the best things we can do for the planet. Methane-producing microbes are not active in the presence of oxygen and a healthy compost pile is flowing with oxygen. That is how we get so much methane in landfills: the lack of oxygen. When we put all of our organic matter into plastic bags that never break down, it just creates a greenhouse of methane.

How can we prevent food waste?

I don't know about you, but all that info really helped me wrap my mind around how and why food waste is so bad for the planet (and, who are we kidding, our wallets). I always knew it was bad but now I know why. 

How can we help stop this ever-growing problem?

1. Support food waste efforts. Brands like "Ugly" and "Climate Candy" and "Rotten Fruit Box" actively turn what otherwise would've been food waste into repurposed foods like dehydrated fruits and gummy candy.

2. Meal plan for the week. This could look like cooking your meals ahead of time so you actually eat them, but if you're like me, that's a lot of work. I like to simply plan out what meals we will eat for the week so I don't over-buy ingredients

3. Buy ugly foods in the grocery store like single bananas, dented cans, misshapen apples, and so forth

4. Use old foods first. Move old produce and even canned goods to the front of the fridge/pantry so that you prepare and eat it first before it goes bad.

5. Take home leftovers from restaurants and enjoy your second bonus meal!

6. Learn how to cook with food waste: chop broccoli stems into your stir fries, make carrot-top pesto, make banana bread or smoothies with brown bananas, and so much more! I have a food-waste fighting series on TikTok where I showcase these recipes and "hacks" and my dog also eats a lot of our food waste!

7. Compost, compost, compost!! It's so easy, usually free, and believe me when I say, virtually everyone can do it. If you own your own home, throw down a compost pile/bin anywhere. If you're renting, build yourself a bin for free or find one second-hand so that you're not disturbing the rental property. If you have access to curbside composting programs, utilize them! If you don't have a yard, try bokashi or worm composting or other services like Share Waste where you can find composters near you. Or, a not budget-friendly option, try the Lomi composter machine which we will be diving into fully next week to talk about whether it's greenwashing or not. Despite the price and energy usage, it really does reduce SO much food waste

8. Eat your leftovers or give them to someone who will. If you don't like leftovers, plan for that to avoid making them altogether. 

9. Check your fridge and pantry before hitting the grocery store to either see if you can cook with what you have or to ensure you don't overbuy ingredients

10.  Store food properly when you get home from the grocery store. I’m no expert but here are a few tips: onions and potatoes should be kept in a cool dark place, tomatoes and avocados ripen best on the windowsill, and lettuce stays crisp stored in a damp cloth. If you want a full post on proper food storage, let me know!

As you can see, there are so many ways to avoid sending food waste to landfill. I want to talk more about composting this year so let me know your composting questions down below so I know what to cover. 

I hope you enjoyed this and learned a lot from this post, I sure did!

As always, remember that your small actions have a big impact in the long run :)

Emma