WE LOSE NEARLY ONE-THIRD OF OUR FOOD

USDA estimates that 31%, or 133 billion pounds, of the 430 billion pounds of the available food supply at the retail and consumer levels went uneaten in 2010, with an estimated retail value of $162 billion. That amounts to 1.18 pounds of food per person per day, with a retail value of $1.43. Where that food is lost—at home or at the grocery store—depends on the food. For example, 28% of the vegetable loss occurred at grocery stores and other retailers and 72% occurred in homes and other eating places. For grain products, 39% of loss occurred at retail and 61% at the consumer level. In terms of pounds of food loss, dairy products had the largest loss at the retail level, while vegetables had the greatest loss at the consumer level. USDA estimates that over a full year Americans fail to eat up to 290 pounds of food they paid for, at a cost of $371.

 

Source: USDA, 6/2/14, Food Waste