Episode 34 Dr Lilly Da Gama

Food Waste vs Food Packaging... how to reduce the environmental impact of our food choices

Lilly is a Food Waste Consultant for the United Nations and an Associate Practitioner with the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment. As The Food Waste Doctor she operates an online platform for the discussion of food waste, its impacts, and tips for reducing waste in the home. She is an expert in the trade-offs between food packaging and food waste, and how the overall environmental impact of our food choices can be minimised. 

In this episode we discuss:

• The attitude towards food waste Lilly inherited from her family
• The environmental balance between food and packaging 
• Why the modern food system uses packaging as it does
• Why the energy levels used to produce food are FIVE TIMES larger than the those required to produce the packaging which preserves it. 
• Which are the best/worst types of food in terms of environmental impact and what this means for the way they should be packaged 
• Where packaging decisions take place in the supply chain 
• Why focussing on the impact of plastic without considering food waste is a mistake.
• How food organisations can improve their environmental impact
• The best ways to reduce wastage in the home
• How diners can reduce their environmental impact in restaurants