Hunger Persists as More Than 1 Billion Tonnes of Food Are Wasted Each Year

An estimated 645 million people faced hunger worldwide in 2025, even as more than 1 billion tonnes of food are wasted every year, according to an Al Jazeera visual explainer marking World Food Day.

World Food Day is observed on October 16 and commemorates the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization in 1945. The observance focuses on food systems that can feed more people while reducing waste.

Hunger remains above pre-pandemic levels

United Nations figures cited in the explainer put the global hunger rate at 7.8 percent of the world’s population in 2025, down from 8.1 percent in 2024 and a peak of 8.6 percent in 2022.

Despite the decline, the number of people facing hunger remained about 61 million higher than in 2019. Africa recorded the largest regional burden, with an estimated 309 million undernourished people, or about one in five people on the continent.

Asia had an estimated 292 million undernourished people in 2025, while Latin America and the Caribbean recorded about 32 million. The 2026 Global Hunger Index classified hunger as “alarming” in eight of the 122 countries it ranked, including seven in Africa. Somalia recorded the worst score, followed by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Chad and Madagascar.

The index could not calculate scores for Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi and Yemen because of conflict and gaps in available data.

Losses occur across the food chain

The Food and Agriculture Organization distinguishes food loss from food waste. Food loss takes place after harvest and before products reach shops, including during storage, transport and processing. Food waste occurs largely at the consumer level and involves food discarded by shops, restaurants and households.

About 13 percent of food produced globally is estimated to be lost before reaching shops, representing more than $400 billion in food value each year. Fruits and vegetables experience some of the highest losses before sale.

Separately, the United Nations Environment Programme estimates that households, restaurants, food services and shops discarded almost one-fifth of the food available to consumers in 2022. That amounted to about 1.05 billion tonnes, equivalent to roughly 52.5 million 20-tonne trucks.

Households accounted for 60 percent of consumer-level food waste, followed by restaurants and other food services at 28 percent and shops at 12 percent.

Households carry the largest share

People waste an average of about 132kg of food per person each year, with 79kg discarded at home, according to figures cited in the explainer.

The Maldives had the highest cited level among the countries discussed, at about 260kg per person annually. Syria, the Dominican Republic, Seychelles, Mexico and Tunisia each recorded more than 210kg per person. Spain was among the countries with the lowest cited levels, at around 39kg or less per person annually.

UNEP said hotter countries tend to record higher household food waste. Greater consumption of fresh produce and less access to refrigeration were presented as possible explanations, rather than confirmed causes.

Economic and environmental costs

The United Nations estimates that food loss and waste cost the global economy more than $1 trillion each year. Discarded food also represents wasted land, water, energy and money used in its production.

About 1.4 billion hectares, or 28 percent of the world’s agricultural land, is used to grow food that is never eaten. Food loss and waste are also estimated to generate between 8 percent and 10 percent of global greenhouse-gas emissions, including methane released as food decomposes in landfills.

The explainer points to household waste as an area where individuals can make a difference and refers to reduction measures recommended by food-waste campaigners and UN agencies.