Wasting food is like a crime: Environment Minister

Pitching for India's message of a lifestyle with minimum carbon footprint, Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave on Monday said here that wasting food is like being a "carbon criminal" and that soon campaigns will be initiated against it.

"Today is (first Prime Minister Jawaharlal) Nehru Ji's birthday which is Children's Day in Inida. I request children that take only that much food into your plate that you can eat. Please don't waste food. We will soon initiate a movement in our country against wasting food and request other countries to do the same," said Dave, who arrived here ahead of the UN high-level talks at COP22.

He said that the ideology of some societies where leaving some food on the plate is considered "civilsed" has to change.

The minister also quoted an American scholar, stating how total food wasted in the US can feed a small African nation.

"Its not just about feeding a poor. Just imagine the emissions for cooking all that food. How much carbon would've produced," he said.

The minister also lauched a book "Lifestyle for minimum carbon footprint", and gave example of Gandhi, Buddha, Nalsen Mandela and others as an example of life with minimum carbon footprint.

--IANS

kd/vd