7.6 million tonnes of food is wasted annually in Australia (Pixabay)
The day for Awareness of Food Loss and Waste was established in 2020 by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), a United Nations agency. The late Pope Francis highlighted the importance of this day in a letter he wrote to the FAO's Director General, Mr Qu Donggyu, on September 29, 2023.
In this letter, Pope Francis decried today's throw-away culture. He said this prevailing culture "has led to the denaturalisation of the value of food, reducing it to a mere commodity." The pope further pointed out that food loss and waste are an "ethical issue" because they rob the poor of food, which is every person's right.
Yet, people experiencing poverty have to scavenge or beg for food. Finally, Pope Francis concluded that the root cause of this situation is "food is seen solely as an economic commodity," resulting in optimum-priced foods that exclude people and families who cannot afford these high costs. On the contrary, we understand that food is a gift from God and should be accessible to all as a right, not a privilege.
Shortly after I arrived in Korea, I learnt an important lesson about the value of food. One day, the Parish Sister told firmly but politely that, according to Korean culture, one must eat every last grain of rice in the bowl. Unwittingly, I had been leaving a grain or two in my rice bowl at meals with the parishioners.
The Sister explained that the farmers had worked extremely hard to produce the rice and that we should be grateful for their efforts by not wasting any of it. Of course, at that time, the people of Korea knew the value of food, having only twenty years previously suffered food shortages during the Korean War.
This experience reminded me of my parents' stories of the hardships of the "Great Depression” and WWII. Food was often scarce, so they had to "fill up" on "bread and jam" – a small mercy for which they were grateful. The words of the Korean Sister and my parents deepened my awareness of the precious nature of even the tiniest morsel of food.
Even at the risk of being accused of being a glutton and a drunkard (Luke 6:29-39), Jesus showed us the sacredness of food by basing much of his ministry around sharing a meal. Within these meals, he taught us about God, the source of hospitality, generosity, forgiveness, and reconciliation.
Jesus began his ministry at a feast, the famous marriage feast of Cana (John 2:1-12). On this occasion, while initially reluctant to do so, he even soothed the host's embarrassment at the shortage of wine by working his first miracle. In so doing, he showed the high value God places on hospitality. We are then made aware of God's generosity and compassion when Jesus feeds the multitude of people in the Gospels of Matthew (14:13-21) and Mark (6:31-44). Notably, Jesus instructed the disciples to collect the leftover food. It was not wasted.
On another occasion, a meal at Simon the Pharisee's house was the scenario for a woman with a bad reputation who ministered to Jesus by washing his feet with precious oil. Jesus pointed out that this act of love showed that she was already forgiven by and reconciled with God.
The peak meal of Jesus' life was the Last Supper. At this meal, Jesus washed the disciples' feet and, in so doing, set an example of how it is to be of service to others. He also asked them to remember him and his teachings by sharing this meal often in memory of him. We now call this meal the Eucharist (thanksgiving).
Finally, my mind goes to Jesus preparing a meal for the disciples on the shore of the Lake of Galilee after his resurrection. This meal comforted the disciples, reassuring them of Jesus' resurrection. The eucharistic meal strengthened this fledgling Christian community, demonstrating how food can be sacred for the gathering of the faithful, unity during times of hardship, and sustenance of the human body.
On this day of awareness of food loss and waste, we are genuinely concerned that the sacredness of food as the context for a deep encounter with God is under threat. We have referred to the throw-away cultures and inefficient food chain systems as hurting our appreciation of the value of food.
If we accept this situation as it is, we can easily regard food loss and waste as inevitable. Many people are highly conscious of this issue, and advances have been made to solve the problem. However, we cannot be complacent and must ask ourselves whether we can reduce food waste in our homes, restaurants, community gatherings, sporting events, and music festivals. Otherwise, do we accept food loss and waste as acceptable or "collateral damage" to maintain our current lifestyle?
At another level, deliberate restriction on food availability is also a moral issue. Recently, Pope Leo XIV proclaimed, "Hunger must never be used as a weapon of war." On hearing these words, our minds go to the food restrictions in Gaza, which have horrified the world.
Finally, we cannot forget that the very source of our food is under threat from Genetic Use Restriction Technology (GURT). With this technology, large companies can control the world’s food supply by restricting seeds to being in effect, ‘single use.’ The use of this technology is a frightening possibility that may already be tested in some developing countries.
In this context, we, as responsible human beings, reinforce the sacredness of food as a gift that God has given us. In addition to sustaining our bodies, food can help us to maintain our spirit and spirituality. Sharing meals is an occasion to experience God's presence, as in the Gospel passages above. Therefore, the meals we share with family, friends and community groups are clearly sacred times. These are times of deepening relationships, sharing life stories of love, pain, and hope; building bridges; forming new relationships; fostering reconciliation; and celebrating special occasions, sometimes sad and sometimes joyful.
We often begin our family meals and other celebrations with a prayer, perhaps not as often as we should, but in this prayer, we ask for God's blessing on the food, the one who has made it, and those who are about to share it. We also remember those who do not have enough to eat, and through this prayer, be more aware of the issues around food loss and waste in our world. This attitude and the grace of God can transform our lives, so we commit ourselves to working towards a significant reduction in food loss and waste.
Columban Fr Kelvin Barrett lives and works at St Columban’s, Essendon.
