Food & Climate
In the United States, climate change is polarizing, but one environmental challenge draws rare bipartisan agreement: food waste. Even as the Trump administration rolls back key climate and environmental protections, in July, senators from both parties reintroduced legislation to simplify food expiration labels — one longtime driver of unnecessary waste.
In September, the Environmental Protection Agency launched a national initiative to connect food donors with communities and keep edible food out of landfills. Under the Biden administration, the U.S. unveiled a national strategy to reduce food waste and expand recycling of organic waste.
Despite this rare consensus, progress has been slow. In 2023, the U.S. still squandered roughly a third of its food supply, according to the food waste nonprofit ReFED. Food waste is responsible for 8-10% of all global emissions — about five times the emissions from the entire aviation industry.
The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that if food waste were a country, it would be the world’s third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, after China and the U.S., according to an article seen by “Food & Climate” platform.
Food waste itself is difficult to tackle
Experts tell “Sentient” that the problem persists because political follow-through is limited, climate action still focuses heavily on energy and transportation and ultimately, food waste itself is difficult to tackle. It occurs at every stage of the supply chain, from farms to fridges, making comprehensive action essential.
It’s also a missed opportunity, especially since wasting food is widely seen as wrong. “Nobody wakes up wanting to waste food,” said Dana Gunders, president of ReFED, during a summit at New York City Climate Week on September 22.
Many people don’t realize that food waste reduction is a crucial and often overlooked climate strategy. Addressing food loss and waste has enormous climate potential, “but it’s still an underexplored area,” says Brian Lipinski, head researcher on food loss and waste at the environmental research non-profit World Resources Institute.
Most food waste happens in homes, restaurants and retailers, but nearly all of its climate impact is already baked in by the time the food is thrown away. Every piece of wasted food squanders all the emissions that went into producing and transporting that food. About 92% of food waste emissions happen during food production — when land is converted from forests or grassland to farmland, when resources are used to grow crops or raise livestock, during transport in which most vehicles run on diesel or gasoline, and during cold storage. Once that food is tossed, those emissions are wasted. Only 8% of food waste emissions come from the disposal process.
When people are wasting food, “in many ways, we are throwing out a lot of water, a lot of land, a lot of fertilizer, natural habitat, a lot of things,” Paul West, a senior scientist at the climate nonprofit Project Drawdown, tells Sentient.
Food waste on the ground
Fruits and vegetables make up almost half — 44% — of all U.S. food waste, according to ReFED. Meat and seafood, though also quick to spoil, are wasted less often because they are more expensive.
But wasting even a small portion of a burger has far greater environmental impact than wasting the same amount of fruits, vegetables or chicken, says West.
That’s because producing beef requires vast amounts of land, water and fertilizer, and cattle also release methane — a short-lived but powerful greenhouse gas — with each cow burping about 220 pounds annually. “If we are going to eat beef and dairy, make sure not to waste it,” says West.
Experts see reducing food loss and waste as one of the most impactful and practical ways to slow the warming of the planet. Project Drawdown calls it an “emergency brake” solution — a measure that can rapidly slash emissions using tools we already have, without waiting for new technologies or nature-based fixes. Other such measures include halting deforestation and shifting away from meat and dairy.
“Preventing food from becoming waste is really the most effective solution, not only from an emissions perspective,” says Minerva Ringland, senior manager of the climate and insights team at ReFED, “but it’s also saving the most money and keeping everyone fed as much as possible.”
In the United States, 35% of food waste comes from households, while 18% comes from manufacturing and 17% from food service, and 24% happens on farms. Household waste is high because people often buy more than what they need, especially in bulk, misinterpret date labels, prepare too much food and may not know how to store or repurpose ingredients. Limited access to composting programs also makes it harder for consumers to avoid landfills.