HOW COMPOSTING CAN REDUCE OUR IMPACT ON THE PLANET

According to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Food Waste Index Report 2021, 1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted worldwide every year. This has significant negative consequences from an environmental and socio-economic point of view. Experts estimate that 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions are associated with unused food.

Currently, with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the need to reduce food waste is becoming more and more urgent. If we are to seriously tackle food waste, we need to intensify efforts to measure food loss at the retail and consumer levels, and track their production in kilograms per capita at the country level.

The guidelines issued by UNEP and the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) show that composting practices are one of the best options for managing organic waste while reducing environmental impacts. Composting is a method of preparing fertilizers by neutralizing household, food, agricultural and industrial waste, which is based on the decomposition of organic matter under the influence of microorganisms.

Proper composting of the organic waste we generate in our daily lives can reduce dependence on chemical fertilizers, help restore soil fertility, and improve water retention and nutrient delivery to plants.

Only with reliable data can we track progress towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12.3, which aims to halve global food waste at the retail and consumer levels. This, in turn, is achievable through the preparation of a country methodology for measuring food waste. States using this methodology will have a compelling case to guide their national food waste prevention strategy. 

Ayjahan Ataballyeva

How composting can reduce our impact on the planet (turkmenistan.gov.tm)