Let’s start with the following principles.Energy is the only universal currency. To get something done you need to convert it from one of its many formats” Economies are complex systems built to make these changes, and all economically significant energy transformations have (often highly undesirable) environmental impacts. Therefore, as far as the biosphere is concerned, the best anthropogenic energy conversion is one that never occurs: no gas emissions (greenhouse effect or acidification), no solid or liquid waste production, no ecosystem destruction. is. The best way to achieve this was to convert energy with higher efficiency. Unless widely adopted (large diesel and jet engines, combined cycle gas turbines, light emitting diodes, steel smelting, ammonia synthesis, etc.), significantly more primary energy will be required, taking into account all the attendant environmental impacts. needs to be converted.
Conversely, what could be more wasteful, more undesirable, more irrational than wasting a large portion of these conversion benefits? But this is precisely the case when all final energy uses are continues to occur. Buildings consume about one-fifth of the planet’s energyBut with poorly insulated walls and ceilings, single-pane windows and inadequate ventilation, at least one-fifth to one-third of the space is wasted compared to a properly designed indoor space. It has been. A typical SUV now has twice the mass of a typical vehicle before it, and requires at least one-third more energy to perform the same task.
The most disgusting of these wasteful practices is our food production. Modern food systems (from the energy embedded in breeding new varieties, synthesizing fertilizers and other pesticides, and manufacturing field machinery to the energy used in harvesting, transport, processing, storage, retailing, and cooking) It claims to be something like this: 20% of the world’s fuel and primary electricity— and we waste just as much 40 percent Of all the foods produced. Some level of food waste is inevitable. But rampant food waste is indefensible. It is criminal in many ways.
It’s difficult to counter that for a variety of reasons. First, there are many ways to waste food. From losses in the field to spoilage in storage, from seasonal perishable surplus to maintaining “perfect” displays in stores, from excessive portions when eating outside the home to the decline of home cooking.
Number 2, Food now travels very far The average distance a typical food travels to reach the consumer is: 1,500-2,500 miles before being bought.
Third, Still too cheap In relation to other expenses. Despite the recent rise in food prices, families spend little 11 percent Food accounted for most of disposable income (about 20% in 1960). Food expenditures outside the home (which are typically more wasteful than eating at home) now account for more than half of that total. And finally, as consumers, we have a plethora of food options available to us. Consider that the average American supermarket now carries more than just that. 30,000 food items.
Our society seems pretty content with wasting 40 percent of the roughly 20 percent of all energy we spend on food. Unfortunately, by 2025, this shocking level of waste will no longer be in the spotlight. In fact, the situation is only going to get worse. We continue to pour billions of dollars into the search for energy “solutions”, from new nuclear reactors (even fusion!) to green hydrogen, all of which have environmental impacts. In 2025, we will continue to fail to address our enormous energy waste. Food that requires large amounts of fuel and electricity to produce.
