Much food goes to trash during Ramadan

Sunaina Rana / Emirates Business

The holy month of Ramadan brings in lots of joy. However, the season also witnesses an increased rate of food wastage. It is estimated that the over 50 percent of food is wasted every day during the period.
According to Ivano Lanelli, CEO of Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence, “Food wastage is generated across the different stages of the food value chain, however, we as consumers can make simple adjustments in the day to day habits to cut down food waste during Ramadan.”
“A first step is to reduce the amount of food; buying only the food needed is the simplest way to reduce your foodprint. Enjoying meat in moderation helps in reducing this protein-rich waste,” he told Emirates Business.
According to Eco-Waste, an annual conference hosted by Masdar last year, waste generated by the UAE is expected to increase from 6.6 million tonnes in 2010 to 8.4 million tonnes by 2017. According to The Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence, the UAE stands among the top countries in the waste generation. Roughly, 38 percent of food is wasted every day in Dubai, which nears around 60 percent during Ramadan. An average person in the UAE generates 5.4kg of waste a day during Ramadan, most of it food, says Dubai Carbon’s awareness campaign.
“We, in the middle east, have a habit of overdoing to please our guests, especially in terms of food preparation. This not only has negative impacts on environment, but also on the health of individuals. The UAE also has a very high per capita waste generation rate of 2.7 kg per day, whereas it’s around 1.2kg in the Europe. However, this doubles to 5.4kg a day during Ramadan, which is the amount of waste we generate to be hospitable to our guests,” said Lanelli.
Tadweer, a government led organisation, is the leading agency responsible for controlling and coordinating waste management activities throughout the Emirates. Considering the
increase in food wastage during Ramadan, Deputy General Manager of Tadweer, Dr Salem Al Kaabi spoke to Emirates Business about the initiatives the organisation has been taking.
“Tadweer has been regularly conducting public awareness, especially during Ramadan, focussing on sustainable consumption, primarily suggesting people to purchase perishable food items only as per need, in order to avoid wastage of food. Also during this holy month of Ramadan, Tadweer has been reaching out public with a message, not to waste food and rather distribute the unconsumed food to needy people. Wasting food can be considered as a sin, as there are needy people who might be starving,” he said.
An individual generates 1.73 kg
of Municipal Solid Waste per day and it increases by 10 percent during Ramadan. 27.29 percent of the Municipal Solid Waste is food waste, he added.
The solid waste accumulated in the UAE ranges around 35 percent. In Abu Dhabi alone, 33 percent of the waste generated each year comprises food. Globally, Methane emissions from the organic waste decomposition in the landfills represent the largest source of GHG emissions from the entire waste sector, contributing around 700 metric tonnes of CO2 equivalent
per year.
Lanelli suggests some alterations in our lifestyle can help avoid the problem. “Leftovers can be managed in a way that further diminishes waste. Instead of throwing food waste, consider composting. This can reduce negative climate impacts of gases released from landfills, also recycle nutrients. Sharing excess food with family, friends, neighbours or the local mosque is also a great practice that will help reduce food waste. Ramadan might just be the best period to rethink how we consume our food and redefine our relationship to food.”
Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence pointed out that according to the UN approximately one-third of the food produced in the world for human consumption, around 1.3 billion tonnes, is wasted every year. Hotels contribute a fair amount to the average 3.27 million tonnes of food waste generated in every year in the UAE. However, a lot of hotels in the Emirate are responding actively to the challenge and working towards reducing and recycling food waste. “We are collaborating with hotels and restaurants to gather and share data with an aim to benchmark the impact food wastage has on the environment with our Ramadan campaign, which aims to educate people on reducing their ‘foodprint’. Other initiatives like ‘Heafz Al Na’amah’, which delivers surplus food from hotels to the needy in safe and hygienic conditions, are also helping in cutting food wastage and streamline the donation of excess food prepared at banquets and buffets,” said Lanelli.