While some measure of food will always be ruined due to environmental factors on its way into the market, much of the food wasted on tables in the UK and the U.S. is due to poor planning and over-purchasing on the part of consumers. The effects of all that waste reach far beyond a monetary loss on the consumer’s end; when the packaging, shipping, production, and waste management costs are factored in, the overall financial consequence skyrockets. What was most illuminating to the researchers was that ultimately the problem is a cultural one. We have grown accustomed to an uninterrupted bounty and the economic impact has not yet grown severe enough to change peoples’ habits significantly. Via [BBC
