Causes of Food Waste in International Supply Chains

Overview

This report looks at supply chain waste by summarising Feedback’s research in Peru, Senegal, South Africa, the UK and a major European port. Its findings show that a concentration of power in the groceries sector has allowed supermarkets to dictate the terms and conditions by which food is grown, harvested, and transported, and that this concentration of power has given supermarkets the power to force suppliers to waste food through stringent cosmetic specifications and unfair rejections of food.

While retailers generally set trading standards and buying contracts, suppliers generally bear the cost of waste, leading to ‘moral hazard’ issues wherein mismatched incentives cause unnecessarily high costs. The findings in this report highlight the need for greater research to be conducted on food waste in supply chains.