Food waste has become a critical global issue, with Indonesia ranking among the highest contributors. Despite being one of the fastest-growing economies. Indonesia faces significant challenges in food waste management, which exacerbates food insecurity, economic losses, and environmental degradation. This paper examines the causes of food waste in Indonesia, including socioeconomic factors, inefficiencies in the supply chain, and policy gaps. It also explores the impact of food waste on greenhouse gas emissions, financial burdens, and food insecurity. Furthermore, the paper evaluates potential solutions, such as community fridges, improved food redistribution systems, and stronger government policies to promote sustainable food management. Addressing food waste in Indonesia requires a multi-sectoral approach involving households, businesses, and policymakers. This article is the result of a study examining food waste and food sovereignty in Indonesia, with a comparative analysis of the situation in Indonesia and Japan. The article is based on a literature review and discussions between the author and Koalisi Rakyat untuk Kedaulatan Pangan (KRKP). It aims to support efforts to reduce food waste and promote sustainable food management.
Introduction
Food waste has become a major global concern, with Indonesia being one of the highest contributors. People often confuse the term food waste with the term food loss. While both terms refer to the decrease in quality or quantity of the food within the food supply chain, food loss refers to the wasted food in the supply chain, including harvesting, slaughtering, and processing (FAO, 2019). On the other hand, people generate food waste when they exclude food at the retail and consumption stages of the food supply chain (FAO, 2019). For instance, restaurants, convenience stores, and households dispose of food that becomes food waste. According to the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, food waste accounts for 44% of the total waste generated in Indonesia (KSPL, 2022). This issue not only poses a challenge to waste management but also contributes to food insecurity and environmental degradation. This report examines the causes of food waste in Indonesia and its impact across various sectors. It further explores the national and global consequences of food waste and evaluates potential solutions to mitigate this issue within the country.
Causes of Food Waste in Indonesia
Indonesia is one of the fastest economic growing countries, yet still, 9.36% of the population suffers from poverty and hunger (Statistics Indonesia, 2023). On the other hand, Indonesia contributes an enormous amount of food waste. A study estimates that food waste in Bogor, where the author completed a placement, amounts to 55 kg per capita annually (Forbes et al., 2024). This is equivalent to each citizen in Bogor discarding 150g of food per day, approximately one meal’s worth of Nasi Putih.
The causes of food waste stem from multiple factors. At the consumption level, the amount of food waste varies significantly by socioeconomic class. Study reveals that middle to high-income households contribute to more food waste (Soma, 2020). We found a positive correlation between household income and food waste, with wealthier households generating more waste due to bulk purchasing and lack of meal planning.. Moreover, a tendency to discard food due to aesthetic preferences, such as shape and colour, exacerbates waste in urban areas (Soma, 2020). Nomura (2014) finds that one of the major reasons for household food waste is that the food is often forgotten in the refrigerator and gets spoiled.
At the retail and supply chain level, the inefficiencies of the service cause food waste. The modernisation of food retailing has increased the volume of food waste. Supermarkets and food vendors often discard products that do not meet aesthetic standards or are nearing expiration dates despite being edible (Nonomura, 2014). The rapid growth of convenience stores is also complicit in the food waste issue. Since convenience stores must keep fast-expiring products, including breads and instant hot snacks, they often remove these items from the shelves before the products reach the consumption level (Ono & Hori, 2013). Additionally, improper storage and transportation methods contribute to food spoilage before it reaches consumers (KSPL, 2022).
At the whole food supply chain, policy gaps in food waste management contribute to inefficiencies. Even though actors are developing more efficient and sustainable food production and distribution systems, the government has made very little effort to manage food waste and disposal due to the lack of clear policy.
GRASP 2030 is the biggest voluntary agreement in Indonesia that works on making a more sustainable food system by collaborating with signed NGOs and businesses (IBCSD, n.d.). However, the focused discussion about food waste with the author and the colleagues in KRKP during the internship revealed that the government has not created a strong enough policy that acts on food waste and the food system in Indonesia yet. The lack of support from the government in the form of policy and finance stagnates the progress of food waste and food insecurity issues in Indonesia.
Impacts of Food Waste
Food waste has various negative effects. Firstly, food waste contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. When food waste breaks down in a landfill, it releases biogas such as methane and CO2 into the environment (Irani et al., 2018). Between 2000 and 2019, food waste emissions in Indonesia amounted to 1,702.9 Mt CO2 eq, accounting for 7.29% of the country’s total emissions (KSPL, 2022). This environmental burden exacerbates climate change, leading to extreme weather conditions that further threaten food security.
Secondly, the economic costs of food waste are substantial. Disposing of and managing food waste requires financial resources that could otherwise be used for food redistribution programs. Additionally, lost food equates to lost revenue for farmers, retailers, and consumers (Soma, 2020). It is estimated that Indonesia loses billions of dollars annually due to inefficiencies in food production and consumption (Visram & Brown, 2020).
Lastly, food insecurity and social disparities caused by food waste cannot be ignored. Food security refers to the situation that exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life (FAO, 2019). While Indonesia produces and imports sufficient food for the nation, poor distribution and food waste contribute to malnutrition and hunger. It is estimated that 29-47% of Indonesia’s population could be fed with the calories lost due to food waste (KSPL, 2022).
Possible solutions
Food waste represents a significant challenge in countries worldwide, and its approach should be different by their driving factors of food waste. In Indonesia, the driving factors can be the middle to high-income households and the government.
The households with middle to high income can reduce food waste in several ways. In the UK, towns have placed community fridges on the street, where residents can leave their excess groceries or packs of food that are unsealed but still edible (Visram & Brown, 2020). By sharing food and managing the fridge together, residents can reduce food waste, help those in need, and, overall, build a sense of community in the villages and towns (Visram & Brown, 2020). In Indonesia, considering the bigger size of towns in the urban areas, it can be more practical to implement the idea of community fridges in corporations and residential apartments. The author found that KRKP creates a sense of community by bringing excess foods from their home and sharing them together.
Creating a sustainable supply chain within the consumption level is another strategy. If the food that goes to the bin is unopened in middle to high-income households, it can be collected by food charities and given to those who are in need. Although it requires the cooperation of NGOs and municipalities, this method can combat both food waste and food insecurity problems. This also requires the simultaneous development of infrastructures of the whole country to connect the urban areas where the edible food waste is generated to the villages or islands where food insecurity is a severe issue.
Another driving factor of food waste is the government. Creating a policy for food waste management and investing in it to provide financial support to the municipalities and city and village stakeholders is essential. In Japan, the government established ‘the Food Loss Reduction Promotion Act’ that obligates consumers and business operators to make efforts on food waste reduction (Sugita, 2020). The government and municipalities promoted it through posters, social media, and implementing relative curriculums in the schools (Sugita, 2020). As part of the project, the government also collaborated with convenience stores to reduce the food waste of the expired food (Sugita, 2020). As a result, in 2022, the country was able to reduce the amount of food waste by half compared to 2000 (Ministry of Environment, 2024).
During the internship program in Bogor, the author noticed that households and shops did not separate waste into different bins. At a convenience store, the author once bought expired bread. These observations suggest that waste management and awareness toward it might not be as high as it is in other countries. If the government and stakeholders establish the policy and improve the waste management system, they will enable nations to enhance awareness of food waste, and schools can educate young generations about food waste management.
Conclusion and limitations
Reducing food waste in Indonesia requires a multi-faceted approach. Strengthening policies to enforce food waste reduction, introducing community fridges in urban areas, and increasing public awareness about responsible consumption can help mitigate the issue. This report has a potential limitation. The author has only explored this sector in Indonesia for one month, which suggests the necessity for further research and concerns about reliability. Future research should explore the effectiveness of existing interventions and identify best practices for large-scale implementation. Addressing food waste is critical for Indonesia’s economic, environmental, and social well-being
Ditulish Oleh: Rio Tsukuda, ACICIS Interns in KRKP
References
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