Welcome back! Mid term’s approaching and I have been quite busy of late. Nonetheless, let’s talk about food wastage culture in Japan.
I’m pretty sure if you read my first blog, you would have already known that Japan is one of the most environmentally-friendly countries in the world. However, does Japan actually handle its food wastage issues well? Well apparently, not quite. Nearly 30 million tons of food have been wasted in Japan in 2016- equivalent to one bowl of rice thrown away by each individual every day! As an Asian, I certainly do know how valuable one bowl of rice could be since it is a staple food source in many Asian households. Besides food security which can become an issue since food self-sufficiency rate is low in Japan, food wastage can become even more of an environmental problem as it contributes to greenhouse gas emission, considering that the majority of Japan’s food waste goes to the incinerator.
So why is food wastage so high in Japan? A scientific article corroborated the link between food waste-related practices in Japan and its consumerism culture. Food consumption habits are changing in Japan from its post-war era and more and more food preparation processes are getting outsourced. Furthermore, the Japanese eateries place a lot of emphasis on ‘Moritsuke’, and that in my opinion might result in less aesthetically-appealing food being discarded since they are deemed less ‘sightly’. High food wastage is also due to excessive production and over-importing of food.
Japan does have its ways of managing food wastage. Laws were passed and improvised to reduce food wastage. In fact, Japan even uses Artificial Intelligence and weather data to minimize the discarding of food that was previously thought to be unsuitable for consumption. Also, an article pointed out anaerobic digestion is a potential alternative to incineration of food waste.
Recently, I came across an interesting slogan which in my opinion might greatly impact the individual mindset of reducing food wastage- ‘Mottainai’ which literally means ‘What a waste’. Though there hasn’t been a direct link (regrettably) between ‘Mottainai’ and reducing food wastage specifically, it is a lifestyle that the Japanese government promotes among locals concerning all kinds of wastage. Do you know the UN is using this term to propagate the notion of reducing food wastage globally? The usage of the term outside of Japan is a stark example of how Mottainai has influenced food wastage management cultures on a global scale.
Before I end off, I feel in order to tackle the food wastage issue upfront, it really boils down to food processing firms and individual efforts in the long run since the synergism between different sectors might bring about a bigger positive change to food wastage. Stay tuned till next week where I will be talking about recycling efforts!
-Wen Han
(Photo by Paul Schellekens on Unsplash)
Hi Wen Han!
Interesting post! I agree with you that while there are possible solutions in place eg. laws and anaerobic digestion to reduce the environmental impact of food wastage, it is still important for individuals to be more conscious of this issue to be able to tackle it more effectively. Your insight on Moritsuke reminded me of another issue that I know of in Singapore associated with food waste – cosmetic filtering of fruits and vegetables. These fruits and vegetables that are still perfectly edible are rejected simply because they have blemishes and look ‘ugly’. What are your thoughts about cosmetic filtering, and do you think that this problem is present in Japan too?
-Alicia:)
Hi Alicia! Thanks for commenting on this post.
Yes, I do know that cosmetic filtering is ‘prevalent’ in both Singapore. Firms do it because consumers rarely pick the option of purchasing an ‘ugly’ food with blemishes over one without imperfections. Consumers on the other hand have the general mentality that food with blemishes is inedible.
In Japan’s context, sadly there hasn’t been a direct link between cosmetic filtering and consumer practices. However, ever heard of the phrase ‘Japanese people eat with their eyes’? There is a plausibility that Japanese households demand lesser of these ‘ugly food’, and therefore farms and supermarkets have higher rates of cosmetic filtering in order to cater to consumer habits.
Of course, not all ugly food filtered out gets discarded as they usually are recycled one way or another. In the end, it is essential to educate the general public on food so both cosmetic filtering and food wastage can be reduced.