TEHRAN- The Iranian minister of agriculture, at the International Conference on Combating Water and Food Waste in Turkey, highlighted the water challenge and emphasized the importance of proper water resource management and reducing food waste as a solution to preserve this vital resource.

Gholamreza Nouri, at the International Zero Waste Forum attended by senior officials from various countries, ministers, researchers, and representatives of international organizations in Turkey, thanked Ms. "Amina Erdogan" and Mr. "Ibrahim Yumalki" for their initiative in organizing this meeting.

He stressed the global importance of protecting vital water and food resources, adding: "Water and food resources, in addition to their decisive role in economic, social, and environmental stability, also hold a special place in religious teachings."

Stating that Iran is a land with a historical background in water management, he said: "Thousands of years ago, the Iranian nation, by inventing the qanat, taught the world the art of living in the heart of the desert."

The minister of agriculture, referring to the effects of climate change, repeated droughts, and water stress on the country, added: "The world today faces three challenges: 'decreasing renewable water resources,' 'growing food demand,' and 'increasing agricultural product waste.'"

According to Nouri, based on the latest official estimates by international organizations, more than 700 million people in the world are hungry, and over one billion meals are wasted daily worldwide. In other words, humans turn about one-third of the world's produced food into waste.

By describing the consequences of food and water waste, including soil degradation, reduction of groundwater, greenhouse gas emissions, and intensification of climate change, he emphasized: "Reducing food waste is, in fact, reducing water waste and is considered one of the least costly and most effective solutions for increasing global food supply."

The minister of agriculture, referring to Iran's programs to reduce agricultural product losses from 30 to 15 percent, stated that the measures taken include developing the value chain, providing guidelines for reducing losses, creating systems for registering and tracking horticultural products, developing the cold chain, and significantly reducing losses in important products such as wheat, potatoes, apples, citrus fruits, grapes, and dates.

Nouri added: "For example, potato waste has decreased by 50 percent over the past 15 years."

He also announced that a significant portion of the waste from the production and processing of agricultural products is now entering the cycle of animal feed production and the extraction of compounds with added value, saying: "This waste, which previously caused pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, has now, thanks to technology, become part of the production cycle."

The minister of agriculture dedicated another part of his speech to the topic of improving water productivity in agriculture and stated that the implementation of programs such as efficient water governance, comprehensive watershed management, balancing groundwater aquifers, developing watershed and aquifer management, expanding modern irrigation systems, developing greenhouses, and supporting seedling cultivation are among Iran's measures for saving water resources.

Nouri, emphasizing the necessity of multilateral cooperation to address water resource limitations and reduce food waste, added: "The future of global food security depends on the extent of our responsibility and cooperation today. If we can reduce water and food waste, we have contributed to increasing production capacity, peace, stability, health, and global sustainability."

The minister of agriculture finally said: "Let us pledge together that not a single drop of water and not a single grain of food is wasted."

MA