UNEP: Rotting food waste causes up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) warned, in a statement reported by UN News on 3 October 2026, that rotting food waste causes up to 10 per cent of total global greenhouse gas emissions, five times more than the entire aviation sector.

UNEP said food waste is a key driver of the climate crisis if left unaddressed. It also said tools to tackle the problem are already being deployed, ranging from black soldier flies to empowering waste pickers around the world.

Martin Krause, a UNEP official, said: “At a time when the world is searching for practical ways to slow warming quickly, tackling food waste may be one of the most immediate and cost-effective climate solutions available.”

The scale of the problem, according to UNEP and the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO):
• more than one…