Food loss and waste remain major challenges for food security, climate action, and sustainable resource use. India produces enough food to feed its population of around 1.4 billion, but significant quantities are lost across the value chain. Reducing food loss and waste can provide a triple win by:

  • Improving food security and nutrition.
  • Reducing pressure on natural resources and emissions.
  • Increasing farmers’ incomes and productivity.

Why in the News?

The International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste is observed annually on September 29, highlighting the need to reduce food losses and waste. India has developed a strong national evidence base on post-harvest losses. Better storage, cooling, drying, and processing can significantly reduce losses. Digital tools such as traceability systems can improve food supply chains. India needs to integrate food loss and waste reduction into:-

  • Agricultural planning
  • Food-processing strategies
  • Climate action
  • Investment decisions

India’s Evidence Base

India is the only country to have conducted three national post-harvest loss surveys, providing detailed information on losses across the agricultural supply chain. The surveys were conducted by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) and covered different commodities and stages from farm to retail.

  • 2005–07: 45 commodities
  • 2012–14: 45 commodities
  • 2020–22: 54 commodities

A fourth round is currently underway. The data supports India’s reporting of the Food Loss Index under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, data on food waste at the retail, hotel and restaurant, and household levels remains less developed.

Reducing Food Loss Across the Value Chain

Food loss also means that the resources used to produce the food are wasted. Reducing losses can therefore support India’s food security, climate and resource-efficiency goals. The greatest scope for reducing losses lies in improving:

  • Storage
  • Drying
  • Cooling
  • Moisture management
  • Processing
  • Digital traceability

Investment should focus on technologies and infrastructure that provide the greatest impact while remaining affordable for farmers, farmer organisations and small businesses.

Circular Approaches to Food Waste

Food waste can also be treated as a resource rather than simply as waste. Surplus food can be redistributed, while unavoidable organic residues can be converted into useful products.

Possible uses include:

  • Compost
  • Biogas
  • Energy generation
  • Redistribution of surplus food

Such approaches can reduce waste while creating additional economic value.

Wholesale Markets - An Overlooked Opportunity

Major wholesale markets generate large quantities of organic waste every day. According to assessments by the FAO and COSAMB, major wholesale markets can generate up to 100 tonnes of organic waste per day.

  • In some cities, around one-fifth of urban organic waste reaches landfills.
  • Nationally, wholesale-market organic waste is estimated at around 3.5 million tonnes annually.
  • Treating this waste could offset around 3.3 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions annually.
  • It could also create opportunities through carbon credits.

Municipalities and market committees can improve waste segregation, collection and treatment, while developing markets for compost, biogas and other recovered materials.

Bio-CNG: A Potential Model

A 50-tonne-per-day Bio-CNG plant in Surat, Gujarat, has been operated through a private-sector partnership for more than five years. The plant reportedly reduces methane-related emissions by around 7,500 tonnes annually. Similar models can be adapted to local conditions based on the commodity mix, waste availability and infrastructure of different markets.

Investment and Innovation

Reducing food loss requires a shift from isolated interventions towards a connected national approach, with financing playing a central role. The FAO and SIDBI are working to connect identified food-loss hotspots with climate-resilient technologies.

These include:

  • Drying technologies
  • Moisture-control systems
  • Energy-efficient cooling
  • Improved storage

SIDBI is also arranging finance to help small and medium enterprises adopt such technologies.

Urban Food Loss and Waste Management

Food waste is not limited to farms and wholesale markets. Cities also need systems to measure and reduce waste across the entire urban food chain. The FAO is developing a practical “Package of Practices” for Indian cities covering:

  • Households
  • Wholesale markets
  • Retail
  • Food services

The approach focuses on measuring, preventing, reducing, redistributing and valorising food waste.

Way Forward

India already has data, technology and workable models to address food loss and waste. The next step is to connect these efforts through stronger policy and investment.

Key priorities include:

  • Closing existing data gaps.
  • Directing investment towards high-impact technologies and infrastructure.
  • Making food-loss reduction part of agricultural and food-processing policies.
  • Integrating it into urban and climate policies.
  • Promoting affordable solutions for farmers and small businesses.
  • Expanding circular-economy approaches.

Conclusion

Reducing food loss and waste can provide India with a triple benefit of stronger food security, lower environmental pressure and better economic returns. With national data, emerging technologies and successful local models already available, the focus now needs to shift towards scaling investment, improving infrastructure and integrating food-loss reduction into agricultural, urban and climate policies.