I read this amazing book, American Wasteland by Jonathan Bloom, last year. The book is
well-researched and completely easy to read.
It looks at our entire food system - from farms and production, to
packaging and shipping, grocery stores, restaurants, and your kitchen - and
points highlights inefficiencies and waste in the system. It’s astounding. Nearly half of all the food produced in the
United States is thrown away. Half! And think about when the waste occurs at the
end of this system, for example, after the food has been grown, picked,
packaged, shipped, stored, purchased, prepared and served in a restaurant or your
home. If you don’t end up eating it then,
the amount of materials (fertilizers, boxes, packaging) and energy (transport,
cooking, refrigeration) that are literally just being thrown away is mind-boggling.