Mama Peace is a popular woman in one of the densely populated communities on the Mainland of Lagos. She runs a Point of Sale Terminal (POS) and is quite popular in the streets. What everyone knows is that she is heavily pregnant. What they also know is that she is plumpy and hefty. But what they do not know is this…

Beneath that plump and hefty weight is a severely malnourished woman whose unborn baby is at great risk.

The thing is, although she is eight months gone, the baby she is carrying weighs less than a kilogram and may not be strong enough to survive at birth. Also because she is anaemic, she is at risk of experiencing complications during childbirth that could impact her health and threaten her life. 

Mama Peace is critically malnourished and cannot afford a balanced diet. Instead she buys what she can afford and what keeps her full for the longest time – usually bread and the popular sausage rolls sold in Lagos traffic. Every day, she eats highly processed foods which gives her just enough calories to be up and about, but is severely deficient in essential minerals that her body needs to thrive and nurture her unborn child. This is her daily reality while she passes by waste bins filled with discarded food.

Mama Peace is one of the over 6 million mothers who are critically malnourished. According to a 2023 report by the United Nations (UN), “the number of pregnant and breastfeeding adolescent girls and women suffering from acute malnutrition has soared from 5.5 million to 6.9 million – or 25 per cent – since 2020”. 

Further a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) notes that one-third of food produced globally is wasted. This statistic highlights the disconnect between food production and consumption, especially in regions where people like Mama peace struggle to find enough to eat.

Recognizing the severity of food waste, the United Nations proclaimed September 29 as a day to raise awareness on food loss and waste and promote responsible consumption. This initiative invites everyone  to take collective action to address food loss and ensure that resources are utilized effectively.

What though is food loss and waste, and how can we minimize this troubling waste that occurs at all stages of the supply chain?

The FAO defines food loss as “the decrease in edible food mass at the production, post-harvest and processing stages of the food chain, mostly in developing countries”. It also defines food waste as “the discard of edible foods at the retail and consumer levels, mostly in developed countries.”

Further the UN notes that while 735 million people globally go hungry, around 13.2 percent of food produced is lost between harvest and retail, while an estimated 19 percent of total global food production is wasted in households, in the food service and in retail all together. Put in perspective, this means that over 1 billion meals worth of edible food goes to waste every day. This is the equivalent of 1.3 meals every day for everyone in the world affected by hunger.

It is important to note that when such losses and waste occur, the resources and inputs that go into producing it ( land, water, energy, finance, manpower), also go to waste. When those resources go to waste, the opportunity to improve nutrition and strengthen food security is lost. When that opportunity is lost, people and planet pay a steep price for it. 

Because food waste occurs at all stages of the supply chain, any effort to effect a positive change would need to take a holistic, collaborative approach. We all have a part to play in raising awareness and making little changes to our daily habits to ensure the preservation of our food systems. We all need to act now.

Below are a few changes we can all make to reduce food loss and waste: 

  1. Plan Your Meals: Create a weekly meal plan and shopping list to buy only what you need. This will reduce impulse purchases and helps you use ingredients before they spoil.
  2. Store Food Properly: Learn the best storage methods for different foods to extend their shelf life. For example, keep fruits and vegetables in the right humidity and temperature.
  3. Use Leftovers Creatively: Repurpose leftover meals into new dishes. For example, turn leftover white rice into “jollof rice”. 
  4. Practice Portion Control: Serve smaller portions to avoid uneaten food. It’s better to go back for more if you’re still hungry. This helps reduce waste on your plate.
  5.  Educate Yourself and Others: Learn about food labeling, such as “best by” vs. “use by” dates, to avoid unnecessary disposal. Share this knowledge with family and friends to raise awareness.
  6. Donate Surplus Food: If you have excess food that you can’t use, consider donating it to a local charity or sharing it with friends or neighbors. This helps feed those in need and reduces waste in your home.
  7. Support smallholder farmers by buying food from local markets. This helps them sell their supplies quickly and reduces the waste associated with unsold items that may spoil due to poor storage.

This is the approach that governs our work at Inspire Decisions Consulting (IDC). At IDC, our mission focuses on enhancing Africa’s agricultural and market systems to promote food security and improved nutrition. 

Through strategic ecosystem linkages, we connect smallholder farmers from conflict-affected regions in North-west and North-east Nigeria to high-value markets in South-west Nigeria, particularly for agricultural commodities easily susceptible to post-harvest losses like onions and cowpea. This access to markets not only boosts farmer incomes but also significantly reduces food loss, ultimately transforming local economies. 

Visit our website at https://inspiredecisions.com to discover how we’re impacting farmers across Nigeria.