Sheila Skeaff: University of Otago nutrition professor on the new report exposing food waste stats

New Zealand farms and food producers appear to be outpacing other countries when it comes to reducing food waste.

A report commissioned by the Ministry of Environment reveals more than 1.2 million tonnes of food is wasted or thrown away here every year.

The total proportion of food wasted is between 5 and 10 percent - considerably lower than the global estimate of 30 to 40 percent.

University of Otago nutrition professor and report author Sheila Skeaff says household food waste is still as high as most other countries, but producers are ahead.

"We produce a lot of food and we're pretty good at making sure that we make the best use of that, particularly on farms and in processing."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now we've got new food waste stats out. It turns
out consumers are not the biggest wasters. It's actually everyone
else in the food chain, from the growers to the
processes to the retailers. They waste two thirds of the
stuff that we throw away, most of it is edible.
It adds up to about two hundred and thirty seven
CAGs per person per year. Sheila Schief is a professor
at the University of Otago and wrote the report High Shila, Hello,

(00:21):
why are they throwing it away?

Speaker 2 (00:24):
I don't think it's just primary and process and we've
also got a lot of food waste happening at and households.
But I mean, if we think about things on farm,
you know, we're part of the problem too, is people
don't want to buy wonky fruit or things that are,
you know, not the right size. I'm just as guilty
about as anybody. So, yeah, it was some of the
reasons why. And food safety is a huge problem too.

(00:47):
Of course we have to look at food safety.

Speaker 1 (00:48):
Are you talking about in terms of the best buy
date and the used by date where they don't.

Speaker 2 (00:52):
I'm not gonna hear that's one of that. But even
even having things you know that maybe they're starting to
you know, they're not at you know, at the best
even primary produce, it's not best, and not necessarily talking
about packaged foods, but you know they maybe they're you know,
starting to welter bed. And then it's a matter of
decision of whether you know you're gonna get that product
and then use it or whether you're going to throw

(01:13):
it away? She live.

Speaker 1 (01:14):
Isn't there a market here in the cost of living
crisis for selling US an apple that's a little undersized
in US paying twenty percent.

Speaker 2 (01:21):
Lest Yeah, I mean, I think it's a really good point.
It is hard to break. It's very hard to change
people's behaviors, I think, and even myself. You know, when
you go to go and you're looking through, you're always
kind of looking for I don't are we looking for
the best food? I mean, I do try to buy
the wonky bags of fruit and things like that, But
it is a matter of kind of changing our mindset

(01:43):
a little bit about what we were willing to purchase.

Speaker 1 (01:46):
Is it economically viable for them though, if they have
if they've got a whole bunch of wonky apples to
pay the labor costs of sorting it, then transporting it,
and then selling it at a discount. Does it actually
make ends meant for them?

Speaker 2 (01:58):
I don't know the answer to that, would have to
contact the supermarkets. But you know, well, wors what are
they doing? You know, they're doing the wonky avocados and
the wonky this and the wonky that. So I mean,
maybe I buy them?

Speaker 1 (02:09):
Do you buy them? Yeah?

Speaker 2 (02:10):
I do, definitely do buy them for sure, although I
rather they weren't in a in a in a bag
that was like a netted bag.

Speaker 1 (02:16):
But does she like the notice they're not that wonky
Like that's still pretty good.

Speaker 2 (02:19):
They're totally not wonky.

Speaker 1 (02:21):
I it's weird that they're even considered wonky.

Speaker 2 (02:23):
Yeah, no, I agree, But I think they're smaller like
often those avocados they're in they're quite They're small, they're
not the bigger ones. So yeah, but it's fine for me.
What difference? So I don't care.

Speaker 1 (02:32):
Yeah, I'm with you on that. Okay. Now, now on
the bright side, we are wasting a whole lot less
than the rest of the world. Why is that?

Speaker 2 (02:38):
Oh, I wouldn't sit Well, okay, it's a tricky one.
If you actually go and have a look at the report. Okay,
you'll see that actually in the UK and the EU
per capita there there are half of us. But in
fact I heard her talk last week and in Japan
they're even lower. So it but it does depend what
you measure, and unfortunately it's not all measuring an apple

(03:02):
and an apple. It's measuring different things. So there is
a little bit of an issue with how we measure.

Speaker 1 (03:07):
So do you think we actually waste a lot more
than we think?

Speaker 2 (03:09):
No? I think as as a country, okay, we produce
a lot of food and we're pretty good at making
sure that we make best use of that, particularly on
farm and in processing, because I think you know, we've
got good cold you know, cold chain, we've got we
bring people in to pick pick the food, et cetera.
So we're pretty good. Household food waste is as high

(03:30):
as it is in lots of places like Europe.

Speaker 1 (03:33):
All Right, Sheila, thank you very much, really appreciate it.
Sheila Skiff, professor of nutrition at the University of Otago
and also the author of the report.

Speaker 2 (03:40):
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