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Approximately one third (1.3 billion tons) of global food production is wasted each year, while 800 million people are suffering from chronic hunger. Having adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Japan and the rest of the international community aim to eradicate world hunger and halve food loss by 2030. However, there is 6.43 million tons of food loss (food that can be eaten which is thrown out) in Japan each year, equivalent to approximately 8% of the food intended for domestic consumption (80.88 million tons) (2016 estimate by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries). A variety of efforts have been made in different areas to deal with this issue, with the Diet enacting a law in May this year to promote food loss reduction, and a new point system being introduced for convenience stores. What special circumstances surround food loss in Japan, which has been called “the land of gluttony,” and what measures can be taken to combat it?

The FPCJ invited Dr. Tomio Kobayashi, a professor at the Aichi Institute of Technology, researcher of food banks and food loss originating in food distribution, member of the Food Recycling Expert Panel of the Ministry of the Environment Central Environment Council, and president of the Doggy Bag Committee, to discuss this issue.

The briefing had a total of 14 participants including journalists from Indonesia, France, Germany, and the USA.

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