Globalization
brought about excessive consumption via increasing transactions of goods and
services globally (Chanda, 2007). With rising affluence, the global demand for food
has increased in developed countries. Singapore is no exception to this trend. According
to a report by National Environment Agency (NEA), the
amount of food waste in Singapore hit a record high last year as 703,200 tonnes
was generated which saw a 26 per cent spike from the 558,900 tonnes produced in
2007. However, the
recycling rate for food waste has dropped from 16% in 2010 to 12% in 2012.
Thus, more efforts must be taken to reverse this adverse trend of increasing
food waste.
Unfortunately, there
is growing mindset of “cosmetics perfectionism” among consumers. For example,
food shoppers will tend to only buy fruits and vegetable that look nice or
prefect. There is even legislation
in the European Union which prohibits the sale of misshapen produce. Though the
European Union lifted the ban on some 26 types of fruits in 2009, it still remains
on ten types of fruits and vegetables (Mardell, 2008). This mindset is more
rampant among supermarkets which place more emphasis on good quality items that
look nice on display. Once
fresh produce show the slightest defects or are deemed unsellable by supermarket
staff, they will be discarded (Low & Aw, 2009).
Moreover,
there is also wastage of food arising from inventory mismanagement and lack of
properly-trained staff. For example, if an unskilled cook produced a badly
prepared dish which cannot be used, the dish will be just being discarded. While
proper inventory management could reduce costs for businesses, most food
establishments adopt a standard practice of having 10 to 20 per cent buffer
stock (Low & Aw, 2009). Thus, there is often over-buying of food stock among
food retailers when there is low demand from the consumers.
Though the
food waste from the supermarkets and food retailers can be reused as compost,
their economic viability is questionable as the cost making
a tonne of compost from food waste costs more than just incinerating it (Tan,
2013). However, there are still many alternative methods of recycling such
waste. One solution is to make food from the waste. For example, the
Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) came up with a snack by recycling soya
bean pulp, or Okara in Japanese (Sim, 2013). Though this idea may sound
controversial, it can inspire food businesses to convert cost-incurring food wastage
into revenue-generating avenues. Nonetheless, some people will be disgusted at
the idea of eating food that is produced from waste. However, people will
accept such food in the long run just like they accept Newater, drinkable water
processed from waste paper.
In addition,
the government can mandate that the food businesses need to send their staff go for proper skill-training in food-preparing and inventory management. Though
this may increase the cost of operation for the firms in the short term, it can
save costs for them in the long term via better utilization of food stock. Alternatively,
food businesses with excess supply of food stock due to under-whelming demand
can donate their food product to charities like “Food FromThe Heart”.
Though the effectiveness of this solution will be hard to gauge as people's habits do not change overnight, it will still be prudent for food businesses to embrace this policy as it can help them cut losses and reinforce their image as eco-friendly retailers.Moreover, Singapore,
being a land-scare city island, does not the capacity to produce large amount
of food to meet its own needs. Thus, more significant effort must be focused on
adopting the right attitude of recycling or reducing food waste as changing socioeconomic
landscape of the world and worsening environmental condition due to global
warming will affect the future food supply adversely.
References
Chanda, N. (2007). The
Double Edge of Globalization. YaleGlobal. Retrieved
from http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/double-edge-globalization
National Environment Agency. (2013). Waste Statistics and Recycling Rate for 2012.Retrieved from http://app2.nea.gov.sg/energy-waste/waste-management/waste-statistics-and-overall-recycling
Tan, R. (2013, Aug 13). So much food waste, so little recycling in Singapore.The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot.sg/2013/08/so-much-food-waste-so-little-recycling.html#.UlVq3BD670Y
Mardell, M. (2008). EU slices up 'ugly fruit' rules. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7723808.stm
Low.K &
Aw.M.( 2010, March 19). The
Food Waste Recycling Dilemma. Retrieved from: http://foodwasterepublic.com/category/blog/2010/03/the-food-waste-recycling-dilemma/
Hi Jun Kang,
ReplyDeleteHere are our comments:
1. Is the main topic focus of the essay clear?
Clear.
2. Has background information been given for the problem/issue discussed? (In short, has the nature of the problem/issue been explained in detail and contextualized?)
Yes.
3. Is there any expert opinion presented/quoted in the introduction vouching for the existence of this problem?
Yes.
4. Does the thesis statement make the writer’s stand/opinion clear?
Thesis statement is not specific enough.
5. Is it also clear what solution the writer is recommending?
Yes.
6. Does the writer make clear how the solutions will address the problem directly?
Yes.
7. Are the potential benefits of these suggestions and/or solutions clearly presented?
Yes.
8. Is there any expert opinion given that would validate or support the various solutions?
Yes.
9. Are the cited sources relevant and effective?
Yes. However, you should have supporting evidence for your own solutions.
10. Do the in-text citations reflect an understanding of the APA style?
-NEA report was not cited.
11. Do the end-of-text citations reflect an understanding of the APA style?
-Not in alphabetical order.
-Not indented.
-Wrong format.
12. What language use problems exist (using the categories from the rubrics)?
Ok.
13. How would you rate the overall impact of the language on a scale of 1 (terrible) to 10 (perfect)?
7.
14. How would you rate the overall impact of the content on a scale of 1 (terrible) to 10 (perfect)?
6.
15. How would you rate the overall impact of the organization on a scale of 1 (terrible) to 10 (perfect)?
6.
From: Fangfei, Vanessa Tung, Jeremy
Thanks, Jun Kang!
ReplyDeleteLet's work on this in class!