Jacky Foo, USP-Samoa wrote:
>does high losses of produce also reflect on a surplus of food
>or is it purely a matter of the efficiency of management and transportation?

If you mean that people throw food away because they have lots of it, then
this is a matter of idiosyncracy and culture, not a matter of management. We
have analyized the losses deriving from poor management practices, have
quantified them and have proposed remedies. We include transportation into
management procedures, as the farmer or retailer has to choose the type of
vehicle, the type of packaging and most importantly, the time of day for
transportation.

I have some trouble in understanding your question. The marketing lap of the
life cycle involves traders who make their living on the fee they collect for
transferring produce from the farmer or wholesaler to the consumer. I do not
see how any such trader would intentionally throw away produce after having
bought it. This practice would cut directly into his or her profits. In this
respect, I could maybe mention the ocurrence of exceptional situations where
farmers publically destroy a certain type of produce in order to protest
against low wholesale prices. This has happened in Brazil, but I would say it
is not the routine. Our research has to stick to facts and to normal
situations where the market determines the prices.

In the consumption lap, there is no trading and no profit, so things are a
little different. It is theoretically possible that a housewife buys food in
order to throw it away, or to give it to peddlars, or to feed her dog or what
have you. As we mentioned in the paper, we do not have data on this practice,
simply because we have not done any research as yet inside the households.
This is our next target, and I thank you for bringing up this topic, which
shows that there really is a need for the research.

Jacky, I hope I have been able to clear up your doubts. I am not so sure,
though. Let me know.

Regards,
Manfred