Gordon
Brown prepares for first meeting with Russian President
Families facing spiralling shopping bills were told by Gordon Brown yesterday
to stop wasting food, as a government report said that Britons were throwing
away groceries worth more than £1 billion a year.
A cross-Whitehall study into higher food costs has identified waste as a
factor. The report said that British households disposed of four million
tonnes of food each year that could have been eaten. The Cabinet Office
inquiry into food policy, ordered by Mr Brown soon after he became Prime
Minister, accuses families of wasting an average of £420 a year on food, The
Times has learnt.
Mr Brown reinforced its message yesterday, calling on people to stop throwing
food away as he travelled to the G8 summit in Japan. “If we are to get food
prices down, we must do more to deal with unnecessary demands, such as by
all of us doing more to reduce our food waste,” he said.
A second government report will blame the switch to biofuels in Britain and
Europe for a big part in pushing up food prices. It will also raise serious
questions over whether this has produced the environmental benefits that
were expected from adding plant-based fuels to petrol and diesel.
The two reports, aiming to tackle the demand side of the food price problem,
will be published as Mr Brown calls on the G8 to address the supply problems
by taking action to double production of key food staples in Africa within 5
to 10 years.
He and other leaders will demand international action to contain food prices,
including a doubling of investment in agricultural research and development,
and help for training a new generation of scientists and experts in
developing countries.
The 140-page Cabinet Office report on food, which took 10 months to prepare,
was discussed by the Cabinet last Tuesday. It finds that, having been
broadly stable for 20 years from 1985 to 2005, world food prices have risen
substantially because of a combination of poor harvests in exporting
countries, higher energy and fertiliser costs, the diversion to biofuels and
a long-term rise in demand for grain.
The average British household now devotes 9 per cent of its spending to food,
down from 16 per cent in 1984. But the poorest households use 15 per cent of
their spending for food while the richest pay just 7 per cent.
The pressure is even worse for low-income households because they spend
proportionately more on basic foodstuffs such as milk, eggs and bread –
products that have seen the biggest price rises in recent months.
Globally, soaring food costs have hit developing countries the hardest.
Household spending on food by poorer families in these areas is typically
between 50 and 60 per cent of income.
The report is understood to conclude that cereal production needs to increase
by 50 per cent and meat production by 80 per cent between now and 2030 to
meet demand. The solution lies in raising production in the developing
world.
If yields in Africa and elsewhere reached their potential, global food output
would be much higher, far fewer people would go hungry and social
instability would decrease. In the developing world, up to 40 per cent of
food harvested is lost because of inadequacies in the processing, storage
and transport systems, the report added.
“We would like to see production of key foodstuffs in Africa double,” Mr Brown
said yesterday. There are growing warnings that soaring prices could spark
unrest and political instability.
The Gallagher report on biofuels, to be published by the Transport Department,
is expected to sound a warning that far more research is needed on the
impact of biofuels such as corn ethanol and biodiesel on land use and food
production before the Government sets any targets for their use in
transport.
Britain is expected to press for EU targets on extending the use of biofuels
to be scaled back. Food prices have risen because farmers have replaced
traditional food crops with those to produce biofuels.
The Gallagher report is expected to accept there is a case for biofuels as an
alternative to fossil fuels and a source of income for poor farmers.
But it will distinguish between first-generation fuels, which use food crops
such as corn and rapeseed, and second-generation fuels, based on fibrous
nonfood plants, which can be grown without taking the place of other crops
and raising prices.
Mr Brown will today press for the creation of a new expert panel, similar to
that on climate change, to be an early warning system on food supplies and
demand, and the risk of price shocks.
One of the priorities at the G8 in Japan will be to give impetus to the
struggling world trade talks to cut distortions in the markets and allow
farmers in the developing world to exploit their comparative advantage.
Britain has already spent more than $1 billion on tackling rising food prices,
through agricultural research, humanitarian relief and strengthening crop
resistance to climate change.
In an interview at the weekend, Mr Brown said that there were “good and bad
biofuels”.
The Prime Minister also said that rich nations must not abandon action to
tackle climate change and world poverty in the face of the credit crunch.
Amid campaigners’ fears that the summit in Japan could see previous pledges on
aid and global warming scaled back, the Prime Minister said they should, in
fact, be accelerated.
“The world is suffering a triple challenge: of higher fuel prices, higher food
prices and a credit crunch,” he said.
“My message to the G8 will be that, instead of sidelining climate change and
the development agenda, the present economic crisis means that instead of
relaxing our efforts we have got to accelerate them.
“This agenda is not just the key to the environment and reducing poverty, but
the key to our economic future as well,” Mr Brown said.
until politicos interfered, supermarkets' excess produce was given to hospitals, retirement homes, care homes and etcs pigs benefited too . To be lectured by Gordo whose plane to G8 flew empty from Texas to London (and no doubt back) empty is to insult the intelligence
Liz Brown, Montmartin en Graignes,
How dare he make a comment like that and then sit down to a banquet - now we can see his true colours. As a pensioner, living alone, it is difficult for me to purchase small quantities of food - knock the supermarkets, not the British people.
Tricia, Warwick,
Bin the Common Agricultiural Policy and save £1,000 per year
Bin the ID card scheme, innumerable quango's, unelected committee's, Civil (that's a joke) servants, Local Governement, MP's 'expenses', and reuduce taxation and waste.
Bin the EU and gain HUGE amounts of cash and freedom.
cap, lincoln, uk
The pomposity and stupidity of politicians never fails to impress.Firstly, here we have Brown and his fellow travellers telling us that we buy too much food and then we have the well documented situation that the price of food is crippling people. Lectured , hectored,bullied and patronised we are!
peter fernch, Los Altos, Spain
''Let them eat porridge''
Brian, Derby, Derbyshire
if this man understood economics he might realise that high food prices in themselves will stop waste. he might focus instead on actually trying to do something useful. anywhere.
TJ, London, UK
I hope he brings us all back a doggy bag...
Dave Hall, Stafford, UK
...and i bet he puts lunch on expenses.
Dave Hall, Stafford, UK
Do we really want or need the Prime Minister to tell us what food we should or should not throw away. If he really wants to tackle waste, he should have turned up at the House of Commons the other day and voted against MPs continuing to waste taxpayers money on their 'expenses' scams.
Donna Walker, Effingham, England
A bit ripe from Gordan Brown currently enjoying 6 & 8 course meals daily at G8 Summit! Whose paying for this extravaganza - we taxpayers! How much food is wasted there? Shouldn't these leaders set an example & meet in more humble surroundings eating basic food like 2/3rds of world population.
Dave, Gloucester, England
I wonder how much so called waste,would be found in the Prime Ministers own Dustbins!!. Talk about trying to pass the blame. Before we know it, we will be asked to rumage through our own neighbours bins for left overs.
Does he ask for a doggy bag after one of his lavish Dinner Parties??.
Mike, Blackpool, England
You know, this reminds me of when Jimmy Carter was president and he chided us all to put on our sweaters and turn down the heat during the last energy crises. Do you really want the leader of your country to be involved in this type of petty minutia? Don't they have better things to do?
Anne, Phoenix, USA
Brown has got a cheek. If he wasn't taxing everything that moves to death prices could drop overnight. As for waste, his government must be the most wasteful in history. No doubt the freeloading civil servants and politicians will continue to live the high life at taxpayers expense.
Simon, Exeter, Devon
Where does the government get the figures from about food waste? We are a family of five and very rarely throw any food away. I buy fruit/veg fresh daily and plan meals in advance. The offers in supermarkets are no good if you arent going to use the products before they go off.
yvonne davidson, Bourne, England
So it's ok for GB to stuff his face on an eight course meal, fine, but exactly how much of that will end up in the bin?
Please can we stop blaming supermarkets for the country's ills, it's boring, needle stuck in the groove, and all that.
Roz, Barnsley, England
What rubbish, as your article points out, food cost, as a % of income is DOWN. As Supertramp asked a generation ago, Crises? What Crises?
Edward, Bradenton, USA
Oh dear, the rampant inflation is all to do with fuel, world demand for food, and the criticism that we throw away a billion pound worth of food every year.
What about reducing the ever increasing fuel tax Mr Brown.
Never thought that that was hurting.
Wullie, Ardbeg, Scotland
People on low wages don't waste food. This man is patronising, complicit in the scam producing sudden 'problems' with food and fuel and is not bothered about the poor in Britain becoming way poorer than they already are. Brown is more concerned about foreigners.
judy, Liverpool, England
Before he starts to lecture us about waste I suggest Brown lectures his chums the supermarket bosses. Our waste is miniscule compared the the food wasted by them. Secondly, I refuse to take any advice on waste from a man whose financial wheelings and dealings have just wasted millions of pounds.
Neil, Gloucestershire, England
We don't waste any food in our household, so what now Mr Brown ?
Gina, Glasgow, U.K.
Could we have more facts? What proportion of the food that we buy is wasted? Does that include potato peelings, apple cores,etc? One billion pounds sounds a lot but it's only two pounds per person per week - and if that includes resturants and cafes we are all models of thrift!
G D N Hamilton, London,
This is just insulting. Our local (Labour) MP claimed £180,000 expenses last year - that's just short of £700 per "working" day so put your own house in order, Brown, before trying to tell us what to do!
Derek, Bath, England
I don't waste food.
I don't waste money either.
I don't have to.
Gordon Brown does it for me.
Brian Drury, London Colney, England
Ha!
I will stop wasting food when Broon stops wasting my monery
Malc, Notts , uk
..and no television until you clean your room.
K.West, Reno, Nevada
Meanwhile, Gordon, you'll be gorging yourself on no less than 8 exquisite dinners at the G-8 Summit. Be sure now to eat everything on your plate so there won't be any waste of that rich food.
jr, murphy, us
How about first tackling
-population growth
-the EU paying farmers NOT to produce and food subsidies
-massive percentage of oil price that is TAX
-barriers to the third world exporting food
Even then, really ironic for a leader of the 5th biggest CONSUMER economy to suggest we consume less.
Clive, Surrey,
this man takes delusion to a horrifying new level. he cannot seriously be telling the british public to stop being wasteful when he managed the finances of the most wasteful government in the recent history of this country. labour will not be in power again for a long time and thank god for that !
alex, london, england
Gordon - You would make a wonderful wife. Would you be my bride?
Rick Feynman, Boston, USA
The government should hire folks be the neighborhood snitch like in East Germany. They would check the neighbor's garbage for food scraps, have unannounced visits at meal times to ensure all food was eaten. If they don't lick the plate clean than no telly and go to bed at 8 PM. No fast food either!
Peter, Asheville, North Carolina
The Lower house has become an irrelavance. Bowing to the governments every whim they have become the Yes Men Bloated by the Gratuitous and disgusting amounts they are being paid. State Black mail. Sack them all. Democracy my foot. Police State more like.
Mark, Gateshead, UK
Who is this man to talk about wasting money? He has wasted billions on creating a vast feckless underclass fed by benefits. kick him out.
john, lincoln,
Ethiopia's population is now 80 million and, at current rates, will be 160 million in less than 28 years. That's one of the the real problems with Africa - yet rarely mentioned. Is Gordon Brown really saying 'The West must ration food so that Africa can breed'?
Alison, Edinburgh, UK
Sorry to say but Gordon Brown is so right about the fact that we waste a lot of food.
I was bought up just after the War and remember that food was in short supply and nothing was wasted. This has stood me in good stead even now. Buy the amount that is needed except for goods that can be stored.
LM, Lincolnshire,
How much of this 'waste' is due to sell by dates? The skips at the back of most supermarkets are overflowing with so called out of date food which is perfectly edible! Start there, and work round the EU regulations instead of into them!
BG
Bill Glanvill, Horsham, England
Gordon Brown is so incredibly removed from reality, I almost feel sorry for this guy. Look at all the waste and corruption in Labour! He's wasted so much money from his failed economic policies, and now he wants to tell the British folks to 'clean up our act and stop wasting food'. NUTS!
Mark, Maidstone, UK
if government stopped wasting resources we would all benefit,how much food waste at the house of commons ? how much food waste entertaining overseas visitors?Save paper cut down on form filling and reports then they wouldn't have papers to loose all over the place!DO all government offices recycle?
lesley, bedford,
Thanks, Broon. Instead of giving such fatuous advice, I tell you that ALL of the public sector could lose 10% of its budget without even sweating. I say this from extensive experience. Are you interested, Gordie? I thought not - so mind your own business! Stand-by lights, food, what next, nanny?
Stu, Worthing, UK
" . . fibrous nonfood plants, which can be grown without taking the place of other crops and raising prices."
That's clever.
Plants that don't grow in the ground?
Amazing stuff!
If farmers are growing non-food crops it is quite obviously taking the place of food crops!
R Bingham, Lauzun, France
I very much hope to reduce my rubbish for the year to one single package for immediate removal: about 6 feet long, 14 stone in weight, very badly wrapped and full of the completely useless.
It will be a vegetable called Brown.
David Williams, Eastnor, England
Gordon Brown = Marie Antoinette ?
Ian, Wirral, UK
Can this man justify and account for the public money the government ministers have spent on vanity projects.
This is the pot calling the kettle black, and I really do not want to hear this. I cannot believe that I voted for this hypocrite and his party. He must have realised that he is finished.
Mark, Yorkshire,
well tell the supermarkets then! ever tried buying one bread roll - no way minimum 4 sometimes 12. and all the buy one get one frees' useless when you are single.
Philip Barnes, preston, england
This is good stuff but if I hadn't been browsing online I might have missed it. Why can't every home fitted with a government telecreen that will tell us what to do? And better still, have its own camera so the government can see who isn't doing what they're told? One in every room would be good
Rose, Stirling, UK
Gordon shows his true colours again - it is all the fault of the untrustworthy British public and has nothing to do with the ecomentalists(biofuel)and deluded little socialist incompetents that infest the Labour party - fine words from a man whose spent a decade trying to eradicate British farmers
Bryan, Totland Bay, UK
Dear Prime Minister
I am unsure of how many sheets of toilet paper I should be using.
Would it be possible to launch an inquiry as I am sure that more is flushed away than is necessary.
Patrick, Welshpool, Wales
Gordon Brown could reduce the cost of food at the stroke of a pen - Alistair Darling's pen - by cutting fuel duty and VAT. The Treasury is presently making an absolute killing out of the higher petrol and diesel prices at the pump. That would help those of us who do not waste food at all.
Rachel Mawhood, London, UK
I'll do him a deal - if he stops wasting 40% of the several hundred pounds a week he takes from me in taxes I'll eat leftovers a bit more often and maybe save a fiver.
btw - I wonder how much of our money this study cost?
Edward Green, Upminster,
Politicians blame wasteful consumers and greedy speculators, anything to deflect attention from underinvestment in energy and agriculture in the last 30 yrs. Furthermore the last decade of excess credit has placed more strain on finite resources forcing the price of our basic materials ever higher.
Michael Harris, London , United Kingdom
I waste some of the food that I buy because I'm happy to swap money for time and choice. This from the chancellor who has put us into so much debt my children may still be paying it off. How out of touch is this man?
Cronan, London, UK
Mr Brown is right - we should not waste food. However, where Mr Brown is in error is that he doesnot have he political nous to know that he should not tell us that we should not waste food.
Carol, London , UK
It seems you lot don't like to have your "emperor's clothes" pointed out i.e. most people eat and waste more food than they need. As the UK is getting fatter this gluttonus waste expandes to our brains. I for one am glad Mr Brown is stirring up this debate.
Alan , Newmarket, UK
It's high time you journalist people found out what goes into the dustbins at Number 10, apart from broken promises of course. I bet they throw away loads of stuff.
Frank Upton, Solihull,
What right does any MP have to lecture us! Brown is an an unelected PM with a party that barely got one in four of the electorate to vote for it. Our so-called democracy is fast turning into farce.
Steve Marchant, Devon, UK
I am clearly not the only one to be sick and tired of listening to politicians, third rate 'celebrities' and the rest of those bleeding heart liberals constantly going on about Africa. The bottom line is the more you give them in aid, the more they will sit around in the dirt expecting to be fed.
paul, birmingham, uk
Thats rich, coming from one of the most incompetent, profligate and hypocritical administations we've ever had! What's the next campaign going to be - save oxygen, "Breath Responsibly" courtesy of Breathaware.co.uk?
Milo, Uckfield, UK
and all the billions that govt waste without any accountability whatsoever.......??????????
it brings to mind the jewish proverb,
'take the plank out of your eye before you speak of the splinter in mine'........
Gordon just resign before you are kicked out -by not least your own party...
mike , oxford, england
Could someone tell not flash just gormless that rather than preach good housekeeping to us make a start by paying for his own sky TV. Having lost billions on gold sales,benefit frauds due to his over complicated governance,Pensions theft and quango profligacy he would do well to heed his own advice.
philip, Ipswich,
Well,l if people weren't so conned by 'best before/consume by' dates on food packaging, maybe we could save food!
R Killick, Ludlow, Shropshire
Seems Gordon Brown doesnt live in the real world, with comments like this its only a matter of time before hos cronies kick him out.
Benny Black, Cumbernauld, Scotland
This is just the kind of statesmanship and leadership we have come to expect from Gordon McBroon.Utterly pointless,idiotic,patronising and just enough to fill today's headlines,tomorrow...Nothing!.
David Knight, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Let's weigh all the MPs first - see how many of them are wasting food simply by eating more than they need. Then let's look at the exotic menus served on all those state occasions - how much is actually eaten and how much is binned. Then let's see how much Gordon has wasted in time and money!
Father Ignatius Brown, London, England
He also forgot to say brush your teeth six times a day
bob holmes, axbridge , England
I hope those who voted Labour aren't complaining about what they've put on the rest of us.
John, Salford, England
In the 'bad old days' of Rhodesia and Ian Smith that poor country produced enough food to feed itself and still have enough for export. Same story across Africa.
Today they are living on food provided as aid, any wonder there are shortages and high prices
No more sob stories about Africa please
Jeff Hyman, Peyia, Cyprus
Yes, it is all our fault. We, the gullible British public voted these Stalinists into power – three times!
At last we have woken up to what a bunch of wicked, bullying, dishonest ideologues these people are and always have been.
Never again.
Peter Mills, Wokingham,
Get rid of Mugabe and we can get food production up a notch.
Then get rid of most African politicians and all of a sudden Africa can feed itself.
Then get rid of the French with their stupid and greedy subsidy system paid by EU citizen and we will have food surplusses.
Funny its always politicians
Richard, London,
How much food (and money in general) do MP's, downing street, and the EU / G8 summit waste? I bet it's a fair bit more than the average. The hypocrisy of politicians stuns me.
Arthur, Newcastle,
From the man who has never been in a petrol station, who has never shopped for food for his family, who claims for light bulbs and a Sky subscription and who gets £30 a day food allowance. Oh and who gets £180K a year plus thousands in allowances. God help us from this hypocrite.
Patrick, Welshpool, Wales
Gordon Brown telling us not to waste is like Pol Pot campaigning about knife crime. An extra £200bln per year Govt spending above inflation vs 2001 levels. Cut that and you could end Income Tax!
Tim Carpenter LPUK, London, UK
Yippee - I can pay my mortgage and fuel bills with bubble and squeek - right on. Got to go now, I have socks to darn.
jeremy, hassocks, sussex
In our house we intend to waste nothing. Veg peelings etc go to compost but everything else food-wise is eaten. Our bin is normally only half full every fortnight.
Buster, Birmingham,
Well it is Monday morning so lets have another dictate frpm our leader. We are all wasting food!
But compared with the speaker spending over 1mil on a refurb and the cost of this useless info the public at large are not doing a bad job.
Control your own MPs spending as first priority
paul, Cavirac, France
GB fails to realise, in many households food does not last long enough to waste. Its 'green' to shop locally for daily needs, than store foods in carbon-emission-powered electric devices, i.e. refridgerators. BTW, GB, we can get that info from Woman's Own - we expect more from a Prime Minister!
Mike, London,
A lot of food waste is down to regulation, and that the government has not addressed. The recent destruction of thousands of kiwi fruit for being a whole 1 mm below EU standards is just one example. This sort of lack of commonsense in EU regulation is not even something we can do anything about.
Helene Davidson, London,
Tackle waste, recycle, reduce consumption, these issues have to be addressed but half baked policies such as 10% biofuels should come with the warning that suitable land is finite and impacts on other traditional usage. Affordable food should be the priority.
JR, B,ham, UK
Curry, that's my answer to not wasting food.
What a wonderful natural preservative !
Peter Hooper, Windsor, UK
What crushing irony - and what a fine demonstration of Brown's utter detachment from the real world. He probably believes that we see him as the personification of traditional Scottish parsimony.
Wake up, Mr Brown! We know about all the tens of billions of pounds (of our money) you have wasted.
Tom Welsh, Basingstoke,
So suddenly, we are invited to accept the implication that, price increases are really a consequence of householders wasting food!
But nothing unpleasant - absolutely nothing - is ever down to Brown and his lousy government!
And if you believe that, you'll believe anything.
Robert, KINGSTON Upon Hull, UK
Rubbish responce Mr Brown! We have given you Billions in Extra Tax and YOU have wasted it... how arogant, I am polishing my pen ready for that ballot box.
David, Washington, UK
How can this man be SO out of touch and SO patronising ?
Nicholas Murphy, Stonehouse, Glos
Paid income tax and NI. Employer paid NI, and tax on profits. Spent money on diesel (tax of 50% plus). Paid road tax. Got to shop, bought food and paid VAT (shop pays tax on little profit I provide). Home, pay tax for fuel or pay tax to move (stamp duty). I'll decide what I'll eat - defy death duty.
Matthew S, London,
If I have the maths right, 66 million people in the UK WASTE A BILLION POUNDS BETWEEN THEM?
We have a lot of catching up to get anywhere near Gordon Brown alone. Northern Rock 13 Billion, 10p tax fiasco 1 Billion and so it goes on........................
Mark, hull, UK
Will our abdominally challenged PM be setting an example?
Paul, Coventry,
How about Brown stopping wasting money. Then both the taxes and the prices would be far lower.
odin, london,
Oh, it's the public's fault. Right. Nothing to do with Labour and it's totally appropriate relationship with the food and supermarkets' industries, or its failed economic policies that have cut the legs out from under the pound, or its abject failure to support local agriculture. Gordon, GO!!!
Eric, London,
Try leading from the front Brown and do as you preach. This Government has wasted billions of pathetic lefty ideas and dreams. What little money I have left after your taxation I will do with it as I wish.
Roger, Surrey.,
Stop wasting food Mr Brown!,how about you start with stop wasting our taxes.More big brother from this useless Labour outfit.
Kenneth O'Boyle, Perth, UK
This is an example of 'externalizing' costs - businesses pummel citizens with marketing, promote wasteful packaging, etc, and then government, acting on behalf of business, blames (and penalizes) citizens for being wasteful. Businesses must change too.
Simon, Oxford, UK
Just another step towards 1984! dont think the voters will buy it "Gorden" , and you do seem to be very unpopular with the voters anyway.
C F Hooks, grimsby, lincolnshire
So now we know why the government is so keen on ID cards - you'll have to produce them to get food and that will be rationed according to your build.
Dr Ian Burgess, Bristol,
This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. The first poster is right...next you'll be told how to wipe your bottoms.
Jenzo, San Diego, USA
Waste not want not, the cheek of them man, who hired a private jet from the USA to fly him to the G8 summit at a cost of £500,000, with tax payers money. If he is so prudent, just why not take a scheduled flight or hire one from Virgin or another carrier with in the EU
Clive, Dartford, Kent
M P's refuse to cut their over-inflated expenses and then the rest of the U K is told to stop wasting food. Hypocrasy from NuLabour again. Just go Gordon - You are a waste of space. I agree with Terry from Chichester - Come on Scots - Roll on 24th July.
Riley, Kiev, Ukraine
I'm surprised - well I suppose I shouldn't be - that it took four months to research this fact! Typical waste of money to tell us what we already know! If supermarkets stopped BOGOFFs then there would not be so much waste.
James, Chester, UK
"The 140-page Cabinet Office report on food, which took 10 months to prepare, was discussed by the Cabinet last Tuesday."
And how much has this report cost the taxpayer? At least £1 million I wouldn't be surprised.
Richard, Alicante, Spain
I would like to say that even the smallest patio can produce valuable food packed with vitamins, and containers can be placed up the vertical surfaces of walls. I have just started doing this in my garden in France and already I am getting a lot of good food and saving petrol. Lets all grow some!
Chris Stuart, Carentan , France
Consumer choice is a myth in most supermarkets. Supermarkets choose the food we can buy, on the basis of which goods make them the highest profits. GB needs to sort that problem before asking us to be frugal with the poor quality long distance garbage forced on us by the supermakets.
Andy, Bath,
The man ( ? ) is without doubt the most ill informed and out of touch Prime minister i have ever seen.
No wonder Tony held on for so long. he must have seen what was about to be unleashed on the country.
Dave, Boston,
Sometimes I wonder if Gordon Brown is in charge of the UK or Africa, as he spends most of his time telling us how we should improve the lives of Africans.
Arthur, Newcastle,
Ummm. I think I remember paying for my stuff the last time I went to Tescos. I paid for it. I can do what I want with it after that. Get it?
Rick Z.
Rick Gerald, Harrogate, UK
Brilliant! Next we'll be told how to wipe our bottoms! A focus group will determine best techniques for age groups, enforcers will be recruited, trained, issued with appropriate equipment and cameras will be fitted to our loos to ensure we are complying. When will this oaf just go. Come on Scots!
Terry, Chichester, UK
The Labour government causes waste of food as of everything else. Regulations, regulations, regulations. The compulsory biofuels rules of the EU is one and the Common Agricultural Policy is designed to waste food. And why does all food have to have a "best before" date? That causes great waste.
George, Bolton, England
Perhaps if thugs like Mugabe were "dealt with", the commerical farmers in places like Zimbabwe could go back to producing large quantities of food and alleviate some of the shortages dicussed.
Tom McWilliams, Fort McMurray, Canada
The Government does not have enough control of the markets. Five Year Plans and Rationing of food, gas,electricity and medicine is the answer. If the people can't control themselves then the government will.
Richard, Woodbridge, NJ, USA
PM Brown is too Cowardly to condemn the US Congress, for Making Ethanol as an Octane Booster, out of Food Grains, causing a World Wide Food Grain Shortage! Do as President Roosevelt did; start his own Victory Garden, and encourage the Public to do so.
James Thompson, Saint Petersburg, Florida USA
I live in Japan where food prices are high. However we still have numerous small specialist shops, and can buy as little as we need. I shop every day, to minimize waste. Veggies which have not been eaten and are past their best, go into soups. Rationing led to healthier eating didnt it?
k, Tokyo,
Welcome to the Nu socialist workers paradise! what next, ration cards? The regime live high on the hog and never have to worry about money do they? What is more sickening, a wealthy elite telling struggling people to scrimp'N'save or the fact that the elite are wasting more and more taxslaves cash?
Stephanie clague, larnaca, Cyprus
Is he including the foodstuffs thrown away into supermarket skips because it has passed the largely irrelevant 'sell-by' date imposed by his government?
Keith, Grantham,
Look at your last supermarket till receipt notice the VAT column?
Cromwell, Leeds, England
i just wonder if the statisics quoted by brown include the masive tonnages disposed of by supermarkets before they ever reach the consumer... somehow i would not be surprised it they did
tina, innsbruck, austria
Rationing, anyone? That's what his comments feel like.
Kirsten, George Town, Grand Cayman
How *dare* Gordon Brown tell people not to be wasteful! Has he no shame whatsoever, or is he just really, really thick?
Notwithstanding his 11yrs of wanton waste with our money, people throw food away because they are forced into buying set packaged amounts and it goes off. Bad food kills.
Pat, Nantwich,
The best way to battle poverty is to stop legislating, stop crafting regulation-laden free trade agreements, stop trying to legislate equal-outcome for all. And let the free-market solve some of these hunger/poverty problems. Briton's are being "told" to stop wasting food. Next, they'll be forced.
Jeff, Queens, USA