Giving Compass' Take:

• Nearly one-third of all food produced for human consumption — approximately 1.3 billion tons — is lost or wasted from farm to fork each year. Rennie Jordan highlights the people in the industry trying to make a difference.

• What can we learn from these inspirating people on making changes to the system? Food waste has economic, environmental, and social repercussions, some of which are not yet quantifiable. 

• Read about ways we can dramatically reduce food waste.

Food Tank is excited to highlight 28 food waste warriors — inspiring chefs, scientists, activists, academics, entrepreneurs, and others who are working to prevent food loss and waste across the globe.

Elijah Amoo Addo (Chef; Founder, Food for All Africa; Executive Director, Food for All Africa), Ghana. Amoo Addo launched the first community food bank in Ghana. Addo was inspired to take action in 2011 after seeing a man searching for food in the dumpster outside the restaurant where he worked as a chef. His organization, Food for All Africa, recovers surplus food from restaurants, diverting it to the food bank where it is distributed to vulnerable populations. Addo has been recognized as an emerging leader in Ghana; he was a 2017 Queen’s Young Leader award recipient and a 2017 Kumvana Fellow.

Christine Moseley (Founder and CEO, Full Harvest), U.S. Moseley is tackling on-farm food waste through her web-based start-up, Full Harvest. She founded Full Harvest in 2016, following years of experience in the logistics and food industry. Full Harvest is an online marketplace that connects farmers with surplus or imperfect produce to food and beverage companies. Moseley was named one of Fortune’s 2017 ‘Most Innovative Women in Food and Drink’ and received the 2017 Unilever Young Entrepreneur Award.

Marc Zornes and Kevin Duffy (Co-Founders, Winnow Solutions), U.K. Business consultant turned entrepreneur Zornes, along with co-founder Duffy, shows how food waste reduction can be profitable for the hospitality industry. Their startup, Winnow, uses technology to monitor food waste in kitchens. Food waste is measured and recorded, generating information on the type, quantity, and value of the waste. The data generated shows clients where improvements can be made.

Read the full list of inspirational food warriors by Rennie Jordan at Food Tank.