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New book reveals hidden connection of food waste, hunger, climate change

Aug. 25, 2015

If food waste were a country, it would be the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases behind China and the United States—yet the connection between food waste and climate change is often missing. UTC Building & Industrial Systems has unveiled a new book connecting these issues.

If food waste were a country, it would be the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases behind China and the United States—yet the connection between food waste and climate change is often missing.

UTC Building & Industrial Systems has unveiled a new book to connect the issues of hunger, resource conservation, and climate change mitigation.

To elevate global awareness of this issue, John Mandyck, chief sustainability officer, UTC Building & Industrial Systems; and Eric Schultz, former chairman and chief executive officer of Sensitech, a United Technologies company specializing in cold chain monitoring and visibility, co-wrote a 182-page paperback book. Entitled Food Foolish: The Hidden Connection Between Food Waste, Hunger, and Climate Change, the book calls attention to the extraordinary social and environmental opportunities created by wasting less food.

“Hunger, food security, climate emissions and water shortages are anything but foolish topics,” said Mandyck. “The way we systematically waste food in the face of these challenges, however, is one of humankind’s unintended but most foolish practices. We hope this book will be a catalyst for a much-needed connected global dialogue on an issue that we believe is essential to the sustainability of the planet.”

One-third or more of the food we produce each year is never eaten. Meanwhile, more than 800 million people—a population equivalent to the United States and European Union combined—are chronically hungry. Food waste also has a devastating environmental impact. The embodied carbon dioxide emissions in food waste alone represent 3.3 billion metric tons. That’s the energy used to produce food that’s never eaten, including fuel for tractors used for planting and harvest, electricity for water pumps in the field, and power for processing and packaging facilities. The water used to grow the food we throw away is greater than the water used by any single nation on the planet.

The world’s population is expected to grow by another 2 billion people by 2050, with the added challenge of feeding more.

Food Foolish features forewords from Philippe Cousteau, founder of EarthEcho International and Emmy-nominated television host; and Barton Seaver, explorer with National Geographic and director of the Healthy and Sustainable Food Program at the Center for Health and the Global Environment at the Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health.

To order a copy of the book, go to www.amazon.com or www.FoodFoolishBook.com. Proceeds from the book will be donated to food charities.

For more details about sustainability initiatives at UTC Building & Industrial Systems, see www.NaturalLeader.com.