Food waste has become a prevalent issue in the world, specifically in more developed countries. We always hear the saying, “don’t take more than you can eat,” but how often do children eat everything on their plate? The food that they waste makes its way into landfills, where it decomposes and releases methane, a greenhouse gas.
Greenhouse gases absorb and trap the sun’s energy inside the Earth’s atmosphere, and currently about 60 percent of greenhouse gases are made by us — mostly from the cars we drive. Over time, greenhouse gases cause global warming.
Furthermore, food loss is food that is lost during the manufacturing process due to packaging or preservation problems. Sometimes, an apple is simply thrown away because of a brown spot or dent. Every year, 1.3 billion tons of food is lost — this is unacceptable.
We are students at Tesla STEM High School in Redmond. We realized how much of an impact food waste has on the environment around us through our AP environmental science class. We wanted to make a change, so we have been educating students at elementary schools about food waste.
We have come up with four ways to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released, so the effect on our environment is minimized. Storing leftovers in air-tight containers or freezing it can preserve it for a longer period of time, making it consumable after several days. The excess food may also be donated, considering 54,206,200 people in America don’t have enough food to eat. Furthermore, it is important to raise awareness of this issue in the society, so people are more inclined to watch their portions, so they don’t end up wasting food. Lastly, the methane gas from landfills can be captures, converted, and used as a source of power for cars, or even factories.
Though this last plan would have to be facilitated and executed by a large company or organization, it is important for members of the society to be aware of these options in order to promote these changes. By educating the children in our community, we are getting one step closer to decreasing the harsh impact of food waste on our environment.
— Shravya Kakulamarri, Anika Dighde, Prerana Kulkarni, Gregory Moore and Larry Wang
