Saadet Party warns of massive food waste in Turkey

The Saadet Party has issued a call to combat food waste in Turkey, highlighting that approximately 18 million tons of food are lost or wasted annually, representing about one-fifth of the country’s total food production. According to the party’s Social Agenda Analysis Report, household-level waste accounts for roughly 8.7 million tons per year, with an average of 102 kilograms wasted per person.

The party emphasized that food waste involves the loss of more than just the product itself, including the waste of water, soil, energy, labor, and economic resources. They noted that losses occur throughout the entire supply chain, from production—where products not meeting market standards for shape or size are left in fields—to retail and household consumption due to inadequate storage, cold chain failures, and poor harvesting plans.

To address this, Saadet Party proposed several policy measures, including strengthening cold chain infrastructure, expanding food banking, and utilizing digital technologies to manage stocks and supply processes more effectively. They also called on local governments to implement compost and biogas facilities to process organic waste and urged for increased public awareness to treat the fight against food waste as a national duty.