Manufacturers lose one tonne of food for every 35 produced

People are the second-biggest cause of food loss in manufacturing, according to a university study.

Food science researchers from Brunel University London teamed up with their counterparts at Ghent University to study nearly 50 food manufacturing sites in Belgium. They found that human errors accounted for 11% of food waste. 

On average, manufacturers lost one tonne of food for every 35 tonnes they produced. “At most of the companies we went to, there was no standardisation of work or visual management in place,” said Dr Manoj Dora of Brunel Business School. “It’s a management issue.” 

Product changes on lines accounted for 13% of errors, while product defects caused 8.7% and buyer contracts led to 6.4%.