More than half the food Canada produces is wasted, according to a new study.
The first-of-it's-kind study was conducted by Value Chain Management International, which gathered data from agriculture, aquaculture, marine and food industries.
Funded by the Walmart Foundation, the study found that the biggest waste is in the production stage.
Value Chain Management International CEO Martin Gooch, says 58% of food grown, produced, or manufactured in Canada ends up being tossed out.
However, the amount wasted in homes is more even keeled.
"The notion or number we gave to households is 50% of loss and waste a household in unavoidable, 50% is avoidable. That very much differs by household types, so, for instance, some cultures will happily eat broccoli stems or cauliflower stems, while some others won't."
He adds there is a lot of waste in restaurants, especially with sauces and dips.
He says the amount of food waste making it's way to landfills has very serious environmental impacts.
"The overall environmental footprint of food that's lost and wasted, is greater than the environmental footprint of food consumed. That really brings into question the sustainability of our food industry. And the environmental footprint, so carbon dioxide for avoidable loss and waste alone, is equivalent to 4 million cars being driven for a year."
Gooch says the figures from this study can't compare Canada to the rest of the world, as it's the first of it's kind, but other research has found that North America is among the most wasteful in the world.