UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Tackling food loss and waste — India’s opportunity

Q1. Consider the following instances of food being discarded: Which of the above would be counted as food loss, rather than food waste, under the SDG 12.3 monitoring framework?

  1. Tomatoes crushed in transit from a farm to a wholesale mandi
  2. Cooked rice thrown away by a restaurant at closing time
  3. Unsold bananas that rot on the shelf of a supermarket
  4. Wheat eaten by rodents in a farm-level storage bin
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1 and 4 only
  • C. 1 only
  • D. 1, 3 and 4 only

Q2. With reference to the Food Loss Index (SDG indicator 12.3.1(a)), consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

  1. Losses of imported commodities that occur during storage, transport and processing within the importing country fall within its scope.
  2. It tracks changes in percentage losses for a basket of main commodities relative to a base period, rather than the absolute tonnage lost.
  3. Produce that leaves the food supply chain but is diverted to use as animal feed is counted as a loss under the index.
  • A. 3 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3
  • D. 2 only

Q3. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. India's national post-harvest loss surveys cannot, on their own, track progress towards halving per capita food waste at the consumer level under SDG target 12.3.
  2. India's national post-harvest loss surveys assess losses at stages from harvesting through storage, transport and processing, but do not measure waste in households and food service.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q4. India has conducted national post-harvest loss surveys in 2005–07, 2012–14 and 2020–22, and a fourth round is under way. The 2020–22 study covered 54 commodities across 15 agro-climatic zones and assessed losses separately at harvesting, drying, grading, packaging, storage, transport and processing. It attributed losses mainly to inefficient harvesting, handling, storage and transportation. Which of the following inferences can be drawn from the above?

  1. India has a repeated-survey evidence base that can show how post-harvest losses change over time.
  2. The stage-wise design of the latest study can help identify where along the chain infrastructure investment is most needed.
  3. India's household food waste per capita is lower than that of high-income countries.
  4. India's post-harvest losses have fallen steadily from one survey round to the next.
  • A. 1, 3 and 4 only
  • B. 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3 only

Q5. UNEP's Food Waste Index Report 2024 found that households generated about 60% of global food waste in 2022, food service about 28% and retail about 12%. It also found that average household food waste per capita in high-income, upper-middle-income and lower-middle-income countries differed by only about 7 kg. Which of the following inferences can be drawn from the above?

  1. Measures aimed only at supermarkets and other retailers would leave most consumer-level food waste untouched.
  2. Household food waste will necessarily rise sharply as lower-middle-income countries become richer.
  3. A lower-middle-income country cannot treat household food waste as negligible merely because its per capita income is low.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 1 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 and 3 only

Q6. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Hotter countries generate less household food waste per capita than cooler ones, because warm climates favour the consumption of fresh produce.
  2. UNEP's Food Waste Index counts inedible parts of food, such as peels and bones, along with edible food.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q7. With reference to the climate and resource impact of food loss and waste, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

  1. Methane released by decomposing food has a far higher warming potential than carbon dioxide over its first two decades in the atmosphere.
  2. Because food loss occurs before food reaches retail, reducing it does not lower the emissions and land use embodied in the food system.
  3. The climate burden of wasted food includes emissions from producing, processing and transporting it, not only those from its decomposition.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 2 only

Q8. Consider the following assertion: Reducing food loss and waste offers a 'triple win' for food security, the environment and incomes. Which of the following statements support/supports the above assertion?

  1. Food saved along the supply chain adds to the food available for consumption without extra land, water or energy being used.
  2. When less of a farmer's harvest is lost after harvest, more of it can be sold, raising the farmer's realised income.
  3. Food that is lost or wasted carries the greenhouse gas emissions and land use incurred in producing it.
  4. Households account for a larger share of global food waste than retail outlets do.
  • A. 2, 3 and 4 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4