The International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste is observed on 29 September. The UN General Assembly proclaimed the date in resolution 74/209 of 19 December 2019. The 2026 edition is the seventh.

FAO announces the theme “Transformative Potential of Reducing Food Loss and Waste”: cutting loss and waste can, in the organisation’s wording, yield a triple win — food security and nutrition, less pressure on resources and emissions, plus productivity and growth. That is an advocacy frame, not a national forecast.

Food loss occurs mainly in production, storage, processing and distribution, before products reach retail. Waste refers mostly to food discarded by retailers, restaurants and consumers. FAO loss indicators are not automatically combined with UNEP waste indicators.

Discussed solutions include better storage and transport, planning purchases, reading date labels correctly and safely redistributing surplus. Food-safety rules still apply: an unsafe product should not be eaten “to avoid waste”.

Global figures are revised periodically. This article does not publish percentages without the year and methodology of the report they come from.

Local events, including academic dialogues announced separately, do not replace the UN/FAO observance. Participation should be checked with the organiser.

The two terms — loss and waste — stay distinct throughout the text.

Image: USDA, fruit at a food facility, public domain, Wikimedia Commons.

Source consulted: International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste — FAO.