+44-7897-074717Short Communication - African Journal of Food Science and Technology ( 2020) Volume 0, Issue 0
Food is wasted during the FSC, from early agricultural production losing to last household utilization. In medium- and high-income countries food is to a high level wasted, sense that it is thrown left, even if it is still proper for human use. Considerable food loss and waste do, still, also occur before in the food supply chain. In lowincome countries food is generally lost in the production-to-processing stages of the food provide chain.
In developed countries food gets lost when production exceeds demand. In order to make sure delivery of approved quantities while anticipating irregular bad weather or pest attacks, farmers at times make production strategy on the safe side, and end-up producing superior quantities than required, even if circumstances are “average”. In the case of having formed more than necessary, some extra crops are sold to processors or as animal feed. However, this is frequently not economically profitable taking into account lower prices in these sectors compared to those from retailers.
Prevention: Communication and cooperation among farmers. Cooperation between farmers could lessen risk of overproduction by allowing extra crops from one farm to work out a lack of crops on another. In developing countries and, occasionally, developed countries, food may be lost due to early harvesting. Poor farmers at times harvest crops too early due to food shortage or the hopeless need for cash during the next half of the agricultural season. In this way, the food incurs a loss in dietary and amount, and will get wasted if it's not proper for eating.
Prevention: Organizing tiny farmers and diversifying and up scaling their production and promotion. Small resource-poor farmers can be planned in groups to produce a range of major quantities of cash crops or animals. In this way they can get credit from agricultural economic institutions or advance expenses from buyers to generate.
High ‘form quality standards’ from supermarkets for fresh harvest lead to food waste. Some produce is discarded by supermarkets at the farm gate due to precise quality values as to weight, size, shape and exterior of crops. Therefore, large portions of crops never go away the farms. Even though some discarded crops are use as animal feed, the standard standards might deflect food initially aimed for human consumption to other uses.
Prevention: Purchaser surveys by supermarkets. Supermarkets appear influenced that customers will not buy food which has the ‘wrong’ weight, size or look. Surveys do however show that customers are keen to buy varied produce as long as the flavor is not affected (Stuart, 2009). Customers have the power to influence the value standards. This could be done by inquiring them and offering them a broader quality variety of products in the retail supplies.
Poor storage services and lack of infrastructure reason post-harvest food losses in developing countries. Fresh crop like fruits, vegetables, meat and fish directly from the farm or after the grab can be spoilt in hot climates due to not have of infrastructure for transportation, storage, cooling and markets.
Prevention: Venture in infrastructure and transportation. Governments should get better the infrastructure for roads, energy and markets. Consequently, private sector funds can develop storage and cold shackle facilities as well as transportation.