Half of all raw food produced is wasted

HALF of all the raw food produced is wasted in a world where close to a billion people are hungry, Macra na Feirme’s national rally was told in Galway at the weekend.

The issue was highlighted during a conference debate on the issue of food versus fuel, which followed visits by young farmer delegates to local beef, biofuel and dairy farms.

Stephen Shorten, director Gro-Oil, a company formed in west Cork to manufacture biodiesel from rape seed, said the food waste is due to over processing, rejection for appearance and size or just being left on plates.