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also occurs early in the food supply chain. In less industrializedcountries, food waste appears to occur mostly during distributionbecause of poor storage and transportation conditions. 1-3,5-7As a result, a large volume of food is beingdiscarded and never consumed, yet around theworld millions of people live in food-insecureFURTHERMORE, WHAT households. In the United States alone, aboutIS ASTONISHING 15% of people do not have consistent accessIS THAT, WHILE to safe and nutritious food. 8 Wasting food alsoLESS THAN 10% OF represents loss of money and other resourcesinvested in producing food that will never beAMERICANS MEETconsumed. In addition, wasted food has a majorTHE RECOMMENDEDimpact on the environment because it disturbsDAILY GUIDELINES FOR CONSUMPTION 1,3,9,10OF FRUITS ANDVEGETABLES, 13 UPTO 30% OF FRESHTHE MOST WASTED:PRODUCE PURCHASED FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLESIS THROWN AWAY AT Fresh fruits and vegetables are the foods mostTHE CONSUMER LEVEL. often wasted because of their high perishabilityand postharvest handling requirements, andalso because the quality of their appearanceis often overemphasized. As a result of therelatively short shelf life of fresh fruits and vegetables, the timefor transportation, distribution, and display at stores is oftenvery short before the produce becomes unacceptable for saletemperature management systems in place, fresh produce stilleasily has the highest percentage of losses among all types of quality consistency combined with premature decay has led toconsumer dissatisfaction, resulting in increased wastage andreduced consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables.Waste of fresh fruits and vegetables begins at the farm andaccumulates throughout the supply chain. In developedcountries, it is estimated that wastage can be as high as 52%. 4,9,11Page 30 » Across the Divide » Nunes