On 19 December 2019, the United Nations designated 29 September as the “International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste.”Subsequently, on 29 September 2020, UP Los Baños via the Postharvest Horticulture Training & Research Center, PHTRC, under Director Dormi Del Carmen, held via Zoom the webinar “Food Loss and Waste Reduction Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic.” (above bottom image) broadcast hosted by Information Technology Center of UPLB, here is the rationale of the webinar:
It is of paramount importance to reduce food loss and waste in order to reduce hunger and poverty and mitigate the effects of climate change.
Speakers at the webinar were, all ladies from UPLB: Elda B Esguerra, Professor of the Institute of Crop Science, and former PHTRC Director; Edralina P Serrano, also former PHTRC Director; and Lotis E Mopera, former Director, Institute of Food Science & Technology. Arnel A Apaga, Director of the Research Division of PhilMech, joined them.
Topmost image: ANN says that with their tomatoes rejected by traders, farmers of the town of Kalayaan in Laguna dumped their produce by the roadside (Author Not Named, 09 October 2018, “After Being Rejected, Farmers Forced To Throw Away Tons Of Surplus Tomatoes[1],” Coconuts Manila) Total food thrown? An estimated 10 tons worth P4 Million (US$80,000)!
Last year, “tons of produce dumped by the side of the road by frustrated farmers” in Luzon (05 June 2019, Frank A Hilario, “All Those Mangoes Should Have Been Sold Before They Were Even Produced!” THiNK Journalism). This year, another dumping of tons of tomatoes in the mountains of Luzon has been reported (04 July 2020, Frank A Hilario, “Why In PH Agriculture, Science Is Not Helping Journalism, & Journalism Is Not Helping Farming,” THiNK Journalism).
Actually, we know enough science to prevent food loss and food waste – except that application of such knowledge is the problem!
I say now:
The practice of Agriculture must continue to Food!
(That is why we have the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.)
To reduce food loss and waste, farm produce must undergo food processing. Miss Lotis says that “processing” means transforming raw materials or ingredients by physical or chemical methods. The process includes combining raw food ingredients to produce marketable food products. The steps include drying, freezing and canning.
I am reading and rereading from the UN the document “#FLWDay” that commemorates the International “Food Loss and Waste Awareness Day” – and I get the idea that:
We are un-intelligent when we separate food production from food loss and food waste!
I say it is the duty of farmers to produce food for a village. Corollary: It is the duty of villagers to serve and conserve food for everyone!
The just-concluded UP Los Baños postharvest webinar has reminded us that we have separated food from consumption. Because of that arbitrary separation, we have not seen how necessary it is to conserve food.
All that makes the Postharvest Scientists The New Guardians of the Universe in the Matter of Food!@517
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