“They are still in good shape until next year.”

Food waste is a serious problem in the United States. According to the non-profit organization Prepared91 million tons of surplus food were produced across the country in 2021.

There are a number of reasons why we are frustrated by this development. For one, 35.9% Of this total, it ends up in a landfill, where it will contribute to the production of methane.

This planet-warming gas is 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere for the first 20 years of its existence, as is the case with carbon dioxide. Environmental Defense Fund Notice.

Then there is the case in which perfectly good food, whether nutritious or not, that could otherwise be eaten, is thrown away because it is not sold.

It’s a waste of resources from production to packaging and transportation required to get products to the store – and the food can also be beneficial to disadvantaged local people.

In a post on Reddit, one user An image has been uploaded A shopping cart filled with 534 packages of Crunchy Cookie M&Ms was labeled “destroyed” at the Target store where they worked.

“All of these things will be lost just because they were rescued and we are not allowed to take them anymore, and most likely they will not be donated like they were supposed to,” they wrote in their comment on the post. “And they’re still in good shape until next year.”

according to PreparedThe retail industry generated 5.12 million tons of food waste in 2021, equivalent to 5.6% of the U.S. total.

Overproduction accounts 8.4% Of the total food waste in the retail industry, these candies are just a small example of the type of perfectly good items that can be disposed of. As one Redditor noted, they weren’t marked as expiring until the following year, so throwing them away is a huge waste.

Commenters on the post were similarly angry about the store’s decision.

“They should be donated.” One user saidwith Another addition“With the high cost of food, donations would be appreciated.”

There seem to be a number of more creative solutions to put this food to good use, and seeing such unnecessary waste is an infuriating example of inexplicable decisions that can have a negative impact on the environment.

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