Approximately one out of every four calories of food grown to feed people is not ultimately consumed by humans (WRI, 2013). All types of food are lost and wasted to a varying extent across the globe and across all stages of the food value chain. Food losses negatively affect food security and nutrition while significantly contributing to increased environmental and economic costs of food production.

The adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development provides a historic opportunity to elevate the issue of food loss on the global agenda. Sustainable Development Goal 12, Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns, calls for renewed efforts to reduce food losses along production and supply chains. Achieving this ambitious goal also requires greater efforts globally in implementing food loss reduction policies and interventions, and a paradigm shift from addressing the  symptoms to tackling the underlying reasons for food loss.