Ⓒ JoongAng Ilbo / JoongAng Ilbo Japanese version2022.01.17 13:47
On the 12th, a supermarket in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. There was a food processor of about 200 liters in the corner of the kitchen in the fresh food corner such as fish and meat. From time to time, staff open the lid and put in food waste. The waste that has entered the processing machine is dried and decomposed, and is discharged into the sewer in a liquid state. A Mart official said, “Since waste is generated all the time, the machine is always running and sometimes it becomes full.”
Not only the waste generated while processing meat, but also vegetables and fish, which are sold on the day, are thrown away if they cannot be sold. But I don’t know how much will be thrown away in a day. “I don’t know exactly what the emissions are. I’m recycling plastic packaging, but I’m not trying to reduce food waste,” said a Mart official.
There is a flood of food to be thrown away. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that more than 30% of the $ 940 billion (about 1120 trillion won, about 107 trillion yen) food produced worldwide is wasted each year. Just reducing the amount of food that is wasted will eliminate the hunger of hundreds of millions of people. Food waste is also directly linked to the climate crisis. This is because the greenhouse gas emitted when collecting and recycling food waste is large.
◆ 400 grams of garbage every day for all people
The amount of food-related waste discharged in Korea per day exceeds 20,000 tons. It weighs eight cups of water in the Olympic pool (2,500 cubic meters). However, the food waste problem has not received much attention since the pay-as-you-go emission system arrived safely about 10 years ago. Food waste is quietly increasing while focusing on other environmental issues such as carbon neutrality and plastics.
According to a food loss-related report released last year by the National Assembly Legislative Research Office, the total amount of food waste generated from 19,106 tons in 2017 to 2019, including mixed discharge, separate discharge, and animal and plant residues, is a metered waste bag. It increased to 21,065 tons in the year. Compared to 2013 (16,032 tons), it increased by about 31% in 6 years. The amount of food waste generated per person (2019) is 407 grams a day. It means that all the people are throwing away the weight of a few Samgyeopsal every day.
In particular, a quarter of domestic food waste is thrown away before eating. Food waste from homes and restaurants decreased from 14,669 tons in 2016 to 14,548 tons in 2019. However, the amount of waste from manufacturing and production at the business site increased significantly during the same period. Animal and plant residues from the food manufacturing industry, whose legal definition is ambiguous, also surged from 3203 tons in 2017 to 5066 tons in 2019. It is close to one-third of the total food waste (21,065 tons).
Ju Mun-sul, a deputy researcher at the Korea Institute of Environmental Studies, who conducted the research, said, “Japan has a weaker effort to reduce food waste in industry than consumers, and the waste generated at each business site was properly treated. It’s not clear, “he said.
South Korea, the secret of 20,000 tons of garbage a day … A quarter is thrown away before eating (2)
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