Christmas, a time of huge food waste

We humans are strange creatures! In view of the massive increases in prices everywhere, many of us have to tighten our belts. Nevertheless, we throw away so much food in Austria every year that we could feed Vienna and Lower Austria with it. And at Christmas in particular, a lot of food ends up in the rubbish bin.

According to Driven to Waste, a study by the WWF, almost 40 per cent of all food produced worldwide is thrown away every year. This means that all food produced by 26 May each year is lost from the value chain. In Austria, 3.6 million people could be fed with the food wasted at home. 50 per cent of the food thrown away comes from private households, 30 per cent from production, retail and delivery and 20 per cent from the catering industry. Waste reaches its peak at Christmas time.

According to a survey by To good to go, the proportion of food thrown away increases dramatically during this period. Over 80% of Austrians state that they have food left over during the festive season. The main reason for this is usually poor planning, i.e. over-buying (too many things) and excessive quantities. Younger generations in particular tend to buy significantly more to ensure that there is enough food for their guests. Incorrect storage and a misunderstanding of the best-before date mean that around 72.5% of people dispose of surplus food, with Christmas biscuits and other sweets accounting for the largest proportion, followed by side dishes and meat, says Statistik Austria.

Food waste per household. According to the Austrian Ministry of the Environment, an average of 130 kilograms of food is thrown away in Austrian households every year. Markta Magazine puts this figure at 300 to 400 euros per household. We are all called upon to avoid food waste and thus also contribute to climate protection: the less food is wasted, the fewer resources and biodiversity have to be used for its production, which in turn reduces CO2 emissions, energy, water and land consumption as well as the transport of goods. And from a social perspective, it is also completely incomprehensible to throw edible products in the bin.

How to avoid it? Better planning of purchases - preferably with a shopping list based on recipes -, creative utilisation of leftovers and food sharing are important measures against all forms of food waste. Some single neighbours may also be happy to receive a delicious meal or two. Fruit and vegetables can also be preserved, and ready meals, meat and fish can be frozen.

Formerly a day of fasting. Christmas time in particular should be an opportunity to consciously enjoy and avoid waste. Because before we lived in abundance, Christmas Eve was a day of fasting in preparation for the birth of Christ. The faithful abstained from sumptuous meals and only ate light, simple food. Only on the following days was it allowed to celebrate more lavishly, nothing was thrown away. It would be nice if this awareness were to become a little more prominent again.

A generally unburdened Christmas. You can find out how to make the big celebration more environmentally conscious at all other levels in → this somewhat older and still valid article.

So here's to a merry, beautiful and enjoyable Christmas! 🎄 ✨