World Food Day: Over a Billion Tonnes of Food Wasted Each Year While 645 Million Go Hungry

Every year the world loses or wastes more than a billion tonnes of food, equivalent to roughly one fifth of all food produced. Meanwhile, according to the United Nations, about 645 million people — one in 13 people globally — experienced hunger in 2025. That disparity is the focus of World Food Day on 16 October, marking the founding of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 1945. This year's theme, "Innovation today, nourishment tomorrow", calls for food systems that feed more people and waste less.

Hunger is falling slowly

According to the UN's annual State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report, an estimated 645 million people, or 7.8% of the global population, faced hunger in 2025. That is down from 8.1% in 2024 and a peak of 8.6% in 2022, but still about 61 million more people than in 2019. It is the third consecutive year of decline in global hunger, yet levels remain above pre-COVID-19 pandemic figures.

Which regions are hardest hit?

Africa has more hungry people than any other region. In 2025, an estimated 309 million people in Africa were undernourished, one fifth of the continent's population and nearly half of the world's hungry. Asia had 292 million people (6% of its population) and Latin America and the Caribbean 32 million (4.8%) who were undernourished.

The 2026 Global Hunger Index shows a similar pattern at country level. It rates countries on a 100-point scale, combining undernourishment with rates of child stunting, wasting and child mortality. Scores of 35 and above are considered "alarming". Eight countries fall into the alarming category, seven of them in Africa. Somalia has the worst score among the 122 countries ranked, followed by the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad and Madagascar. Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi and Yemen also fall into the alarming category, but conflict and missing data prevented the index from scoring them.

Where does food waste happen?

Food is lost and wasted at every stage from farm to fork. According to the FAO, about 13% of food produced globally is lost after harvest and before it reaches shops, through spoilage in storage, transport or processing. Fruit and vegetables suffer the biggest losses. The food lost before it reaches shops is worth more than $400 billion a year.

Shops, restaurants and households then throw away nearly one fifth of the food available to consumers, about 1.05 billion tonnes in 2022, according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). That is equivalent to 52.5 million trucks each carrying 20 tonnes. Households account for the largest share at 60%, followed by restaurants and food services at 28% and shops at 12%.

Which countries waste the most?

On average, each person in the world wastes about 132kg of food a year, the weight of two adults, with 79kg thrown away at home. But levels vary widely between countries. UNEP says hotter countries tend to waste more at household level, possibly because they consume more fresh food and rely less on refrigerators.

The Maldives wastes the most food, with each person discarding about 260kg a year, twice the global average. It is followed by Syria, the Dominican Republic, Seychelles, Mexico and Tunisia, each wasting more than 210kg per person. Spain recorded the lowest level, at about 39kg or less per person.

The cost of food waste

According to the UN, food loss and waste costs the global economy more than $1 trillion a year. Throwing food away also wastes the money, land and energy used to produce it. About 1.4 billion hectares of land, 28% of the world's agricultural area, is used to grow food that is never eaten — an area larger than Canada. Food loss and waste also generates an estimated 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, including the methane released when food decomposes in landfill.

How to cut food waste at home

Most food waste happens in households, meaning families can make a real difference. Here are some simple steps recommended by anti-waste campaign groups and UN agencies:

1. Plan before you shop: Check what you already have, plan meals for the week and shop from a list to avoid buying more than you need.
2. Understand date labels: "Use by" dates relate to safety, while "best before" dates relate to quality. Food is often still safe after the "best before" date.
3. Store food properly: Keep the fridge at 5°C or below, and store fruit and vegetables where they last longest. Bananas, for example, speed up the ripening of other fruit kept near them.
4. Make the most of the freezer: Bread, cooked dishes, meat and many fruit and vegetables can be frozen before they spoil.
5. Cook the right amount: Measuring portions, especially rice and noodles, helps cut the leftovers that get thrown away.
6. Eat the oldest first: Move older items to the front of the fridge and cupboard so they are used before newer ones.
7. Use up leftovers and scraps: Turn leftovers into new dishes and use vegetable peels and stems in soups and stocks.
8. Compost what cannot be eaten: Composting inedible parts such as peels and eggshells keeps them out of landfill, where decomposing food releases methane.