Based on an annual estimate of approximately 931,000,000,000, derived from UNEP Food Waste Index (2021 data).
2,550,684,931
per day
106,278,538
per hour
1,771,308
per minute
29,521
per second
77,583,333,333
per month
581,263,558,428
so far this year (est.)
An estimated 931 million tonnes of food are wasted globally every year — approximately one-third of all food produced for human consumption. This waste carries enormous environmental, economic, and ethical consequences.
Based on annual estimates, approximately 931,000,000,000 food wasted are kg wasted globally each year.
How many food wasted are kg wasted per day?
Approximately 2,550,684,931 food wasted are kg wasted per day worldwide, based on an annual estimate of 931,000,000,000.
How many food wasted are kg wasted per second?
Approximately 29,521 food wasted are kg wasted per second — equivalent to 1,771,308 per minute and 106,278,538 per hour.
Which region accounts for the largest share of food wasted kg wasted?
Asia accounts for approximately 53% of global food wasted kg wasted.
Context Beyond the Numbers
Approximately 931 million tonnes of food are wasted each year — enough to feed every food-insecure person on the planet multiple times over.
Household food waste accounts for 61% of all food wasted globally, suggesting that individual behaviour is a major lever for reducing the problem.
Food waste is responsible for approximately 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions — more than the entire aviation industry.
The land used to grow food that is ultimately wasted covers approximately 1.4 billion hectares — almost 30% of the world's agricultural area.
In high-income countries, much of the waste occurs at the consumer level; in lower-income countries, losses are more concentrated in production and storage.
The UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 calls for halving per-capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels by 2030.