Every year Australians throw away 20 billion dollars worth of food grown by drought stricken farmers, according to Orange’s FoodCare’s James Karbowiak.
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Mr Karbowiak said when you consider the 6000 people in Orange who go without food daily due to financial strain, combined with the environmental impact of producing it, the wastage is a “scandal”.
“That food waste is worth about $1000 per household per year,” Mr Karbowiak said.
Given what the food system is responsible for environmentally, we have to address the way we eat
- James Karbowiak
Having worked with some of the biggest food manufacturers in the world, Mr Karbowiak has first-hand experience of big businesses contribution to the problem, but said consumer waste accounts for more than the rest of the food chain combined.
Through a masters dissertation at Charles Sturt University, Mr Karbowiak set out to quantify just how bad Australia’s eating habits were for the planet.
“There’s little understanding of the impact of our diet on our environment impact and specifically on greenhouse gas emissions,” he said.
“The average greenhouse gas emissions of an average family meal is 3.7 kilograms of Co2 per serve, which is the equivalent of driving a car 20 kilometres,” he said.
Using this maths, dinner for a family of four has the same impact on the environment as an 80-kilometre drive, which Mr Karbowiak said could be easily reduced through a bit of planning.
“Choose to eat less meat and different types of meat, serve less of everything and waste less,” he said.
With a recent quarterly report finding Australia is falling behind on its United Nations’ Paris Agreement to combat climate change, Mr Karbowiak wants individuals to start considering how they can contribute to the goal of slowing global warming.
He hopes a special screening of Food Fighter at Odeon 5 next Monday, followed by a question and answer session with a representative from OzHarvest and Foodbank will inspire audiences to make better choices.
Featuring OzHarvest founder Ronni Kahn, the documentary shows her two year mission to tackle food waste and feed those in need, both in Australia and abroad.
“Given what the food system is responsible for environmentally, we have to address the way we eat,” Mr Karbowiak said.
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