Nearly Half of Canada’s Food Production Goes to Waste Every Year, Report Says

Canada is discarding 46.5 percent of its annual food production at an estimated cost of more than $50 billion every year, according to a newly released report.
The cost of the wasted food comes in at an estimated $58 billion, which is enough money to pay for the groceries of 3.7 million Canadian families for a year, Second Harvest said in its report.
Food affordability issues have led to record levels of food insecurity, with many Canadians relying on non-profits to access food, the report said.
While the food system has become more efficient at reducing the amount of unavoidable waste—such as animal bones and husks that cannot be eaten—it has not been successful in lessening the amount of avoidable food waste, the report said.
Best-before dates were introduced in Canada in 1976 for short-shelf-life foods, the report said.
They were originally intended to manage inventory and guide consumers, not reflect a product’s actual shelf life or safety. But all too often they are confused with expiry dates.
“They can mislead consumers into discarding perfectly good items like canned vegetables, rice, pasta, dairy and fresh produce,” the authors wrote. “Only foods with a shelf life of 90 days or less require BBDs, yet they’re found on almost everything.”
Expiry dates apply to only five food types in Canada—meal replacements, nutritional supplements, infant formula, formulated liquid diets, and foods for low-calorie diets—and must be strictly followed. Best before dates, however, serve as general guidelines for freshness, taste, and nutritional value.
Food expert Sylvain Charlebois, director of Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab, has described best-before dates as the culprit for a large share of food waste in Canada.
Reducing this type of food waste is a “huge financial opportunity for both the Canadian food industry and consumers,” the authors wrote, noting that for every 1 percent reduction in food waste, businesses can see a 4 percent boost in revenue.
“This improvement happens because tackling the 20 or more costs related to food waste—beyond the actual price of the food—can help businesses cut their operating costs by 15 to 20 percent,” the authors said. “All these savings add up, resulting in higher margins and profits.”