Food waste peaks in Ramadan in Egypt

CAIRO - 27 March 2023: Egyptians spend L.E.200 billion on food annually,  it much of that food ends in the dump.

In Ramadan, Egyptians spend about 45% of their income on food despite fasting from dawn to dusk, according to a study by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).

During Ramadan, 25%-50% of food is dumped due to cooking and ordering more than is needed. 

The world produces about 931 million tons of food waste annually. Households waste 569 tons, and more than 244 million tons are wasted by restaurants.

The Arab world wastes about 40 million tons, 9 million tons of which are in Egypt, the region’s most populous country.

Food wastes often causes self-ignition as a result of the generation of methane gas inside the garbage dumps. This gas is one that exacerbates global warming.

In addition to raising awareness on food consumption, acceptable food waste could be composted at homes to be used in gardens, rather than dumping them and producing greenhouse gases.

Reporting by Manal el-Essawy