Hunger is a key issue in my life as it is one of the painful outcomes of being poor and can lead to malnutrition, illness, and ultimately death for those who never manage to get access to some kind of food. In the U.S., we sometimes forget that hunger exists in our very own country. We pride ourselves on being a “developed” country that uphold “liberty and freedom”. We constantly feel the obligation to help other countries because we are obviously doing a much better job at aspects such as protecting civil rights, keeping up with the science, math, and technology fields, or maintaining a fairly represented general population in government. However, this sometimes blinds us to the little cracks and gaps in our own structure as a country—one of which is how we simply throw out hundreds of pounds of food every day while there are hundreds starving in our own country and millions across the globe.

This article concludes that the U.S. most certainly does have an issue with wasting food –more than 30% of our food- which could go to the millions starving in the world. The author also concludes that with a such a major food lose and waste issue, there allows for even more opportunities to distribute food throughout the country. By preserving food and learning storage methods, populations can greatly decrease food loss/waste. The author refers to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations which states that about one-third of the food produced around the world for humans to eat- which is about 2.8 trillion pounds- is lost or wasted. That is enough to feed three billion people. With a value of $162 billion, in the U.S., more than 30% of our food produced is either lost or wasted. The author also uses many statistics to show how by providing means of storing foods- such as storage bins and equipment for preserving and cooling produce – countries are greatly able to reduce loss of food. In Afghanistan alone, tomato loss reduced from 5-% to 5 percent and cereal grain and grain legume loss from 15-20% to less than 2%. With such statistics, the author’s argument is scientific and sufficiently relevant. The reader can easily understand the issue and even change their habits so as not to add to the national issue of food waste and loss.

The author tries not to show bias by providing information equally about the U.S. and countries around the world. Her objectiveness added to her conclusion that hunger is everywhere and food is wasted all over the world but it can be greatly reduced.