Here are a few facts often overlooked because they aren't surface-level.
- 1.3 billion metric tons (2,866 billion pounds) of food worldwide are produced and not consumed each year, representing approximately one-third of total food production by volume (FAO, 2011).
- Most importantly, nearly 40 percent of losses in North American fruits and vegetables occur at the farm and distributor level...before it gets to the consumer.
- USDA ERS: "The inelastic nature of fresh produce demand causes prices to fluctuate rapidly due to changes in supply. Prices fluctuate daily and can often cause the value of edible product to drop below the marginal cost of production. Depending on where and when the price fluctuations occur, produce could be left in the field, discarded at a packing shed, or dumped from the back of a truck."
- Growers today earn roughly 30 cents for every dollar their products command at the end-customer point.
It's a market system problem. It's a middleman problem. It's an incentive problem.
It's going to change but it will take time and a willingness to ignore sexy-looking things like Imperfect Produce and the like.