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  • Writer's pictureAngelica Djanie

Food waste in Ghana; a reality missing on the tables of discussion.


The goal 12 of the Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs) talks about Responsible Consumption and Production, responsible consumption and production that covers ranges of targets, including food. Human association with food, right from production, purchase and consumption, has it all to determine whether the focus of the goal, targeting food consumption will be achieved or not. Globally, there is a massive collective actions towards achieving responsible food consumption, irrespective, there are some human behaviors too that could protract the success of the goal. To avert this, the process involves engaging producers and consumers through awareness-raising and education on sustainable production and consumption and lifestyles that revolve around it. Also providing them with adequate information through practical examples that display the essence of responsible food production and consumption. This is to reduce food losses that come along during production, purchase and consumption.


Ghana undoubtedly has a variety of delicacies, and one is always thrown into a state of confusion to make a choice of what to eat. Right from kids, teens, youth, adults and the aged after eating, almost everyone talks about how delicious the meal was, how much one consumed, and how much the wait can’t be to consume even more, should the opportunity happen at a buffet. Unfortunately only a few talks about how much food go waste. Four out of ten households, waste food in a day, in addition to the daily food waste at restaurants, mini food vendors, chop bars and the post-harvest food rot. This shares a significant percentage of the annual global food waste, which is way sufficient to have fed billion of hungry people in the world. To a greater extent, wasting food automatically is wasting the resources involved in producing the food. On a clearer sense, the minute you waste food, you have wasted time, water, energy and money. Think about this!


In as much as perhaps food wastage may not be completely avoided, there are some ways to get addicted to, that will serve as enabler to responsible food consumption and hence reduce the amount of food waste that occur daily. And be reminded that, anytime you waste food, there is someone at the supposed receiving end who feels the pain. Keep to the following ways, as the means of contributing to the achievement of the goal 12 of the SDGs.


Snap out from the shopping feeling 

It’s shopping time! Yaaaaay! This feels good. And this is a moment where by sensation, one gets carried away over the joy of buying varieties of ingredients from the market from various sellers. And in fulfillment to satisfying our prowess of market art, one buys and overbuys what isn’t needed. Have you noticed that at times, the just fact that you are in the market shopping suddenly strikes an enthusiasm? Seeing some fresh vegetables, cheaper products or a regular customer? So, you thought of  buying them anyway because they are fresh, buy the cheaper products in advance against when they become expensive or this particular seller has been generous with you so you should at all cost buy from her when you really need nothing from her that day.  No matter what influences your choice to buy, maintain enough discipline that you don’t end up buying stuff that aren’t needed. To be able to snap out from this,

Plan a Shopping list

As simple as this, just plan. Do you hit the market just like that? Sure, you know you are cooking so and so for dinner, and you definitely know all the ingredients that make it up, but handling that with a list of to-buy-ingredients avoids buying items that may end up being thrown away. What is your shopping routine for cooking? Is it on a daily basis or weekly? Whichever one that works for you, thoroughly plan and figure out what ingredients are needed for the meal, then list them down. If you stay faithful to the list whiles on the market, there will be less left overs for the dust bins, that is if you don’t do the stales. Otherwise there will be no or less ingredients waiting to be rotten for the bins. That’s why you…….


Don’t cook for the wow

Cooking is art, and you can wow eaters with less of ingredients, same way you can create a mess with bunch of them. We all feel good when people admire our art of cooking, maybe we all do. But that feeling should too, make us learn to cook with reasonable ingredients that we don’t overcook for consumption. Have an-almost-near-to-reality estimate of potential consumers. And this shouldn’t be a big deal if you are cooking for your family; you know yourselves in number. This way, you are able to have no or little leftovers. But in case you over cook, please…………..


Consume the leftovers


Fling your hands up in the sky if you eat leftovers; this makes you a savior, not only to your financial standings but to humanity as well. Hoot hoot! Perhaps you have no idea the long-term effect that throwing food away has on the environment! Eating leftovers has got no a thin line between being poor, same way throwing away leftovers significantly makes you not rich. To some people, it’s like it doesn’t feel right to repeat same food in a row for days. That’s fine, but throwing the food away for that purpose isn’t eco-friendly either. In all trials for options in such cases, the way out is to freeze your leftovers. It is there in your fridge for you till whenever you feel for that delicacy. If for some health wise reasons, you don’t consume frozen foods, give out your leftovers; there are always people in your community who needs something to eat. Otherwise when food is ready………….


Opt for smaller bowls/plates

This comes with the possibility of scooping less food. Isn’t it proper you eat with a smaller plate and go for it again for the second time where you waste no food, than eating in a big plate possibly  not consuming everything? Where does the rest go? Obviously in the bin, especially if you happen to be dinning outside your home. Most of us automatically fall for attractive gastronomy, and this makes it very tempting, when at buffet to skip tasting everything on there at serve! Well, some selfishness is almost necessary, and if you decide to go for everything, kindly go with a smaller plate, to help reduce taking a larger quantity. Should there be a waste, it definitely will be less as wouldn’t with a bigger plate. You just have to…….

Know your stomach’s capacity

You have been with yourself all this while, and should know what your stomach can consume. Were you wondering what if there are no smaller plates? If you know the limit at which your stomach can no longer cross, it doesn’t matter if you are eating with a big or small plate. Maybe you want to take advantage of value for money! Why not? You have paid for the food, so you must eat to tally what you paid for. Attempting to devour it all on the spot, from this drive, makes you to instantly waste food. And in case you are thinking it is a must you finish everything because you paid for it, who said you cannot…………


Take it home

There is no rule which says you should impress restaurant audience. And if there ever is, there is no one who will punish you for breaking it. It’s your food! Eat diplomatically such that when there is a leftover, it can be packaged. Have no ‘respect’ for whichever environment you are, and sustainably request for your leftover to be packaged for you for home. Or you prefer the restaurant have it thrown away? At the occasion where you are with friends or family, you should………….


Share the fixed

Food cost at restaurants comes with fixed prices, prices you have no control over. Meaning you cannot control the quantity that comes too. When a plate is too enough to consume alone, share with a friend and split the bill. When you are many, two people can share two plates, and that should suffice if individually no one can finish a plate. You get yourself to save money, save the environment and consume responsibly. This is kinda below the belt right? Wrong! You will appreciate this, if you begin to……….


Keep record of your waste 

For every food item you let go into the bin, record it! Take a picture of each throw in the bin. When the rubbish is dumped at your absence, you still will know what has been wasted at the end of the week. At the end of the month view the pictures and do the calculation. Imagine if you really have a picture of your daily food wastage, keep them for some months, and do the calculation right! Because you pay no attention to this, you don’t feel how much money you are losing through wasting food. You waste food, you lose money. The irony right! There are situations where ingredients bought are not used at all till they end up in the dust bins. To avoid this, leverage on technology and download any of the several Apps that help humans to responsibly consume. Among them are Fridge Pal, Freshbox, Food Planner, What’s in your fridge, MenuForMums, PepperPlate, Big Oven, AnyList, Cloud-Freezer, OutOfMilk, GrocerEaze, MealBoard etc.




Food waste is real, it happens in an insignificant way that we see not its implications on a daily basis. Thought of what it does to the environment? Humanity? Our resources? Many are hungry, so is most of the environments, hence avoiding food waste is saving humanity and the environment. Educate others about it, follow these steps, at least some, to help save food. Help the earth achieve a total Responsible Production and Consumption by 2030. Stop Food Waste!

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