The Sustainable Development Goals Policy Briefshighlight a hotspot of environmental concern. The evidence provided builds on scientific data and information hosted on the online platform Environment Live and is complemented by stories from around the world. Readers are invited to explore the numerous clickable links throughout the Brief.Food loss and waste occurs along the entire food chain. Food loss is the decrease in quantity or quality of food, while food waste refers to discarding or non-food use of food set for human consumption. Unsustainable farming, storage and distribution processes, lack of consumer awareness coupled with environmental factors such as climate change and natural disasters continue to escalate the challenges on food security. Food loss and waste represents a significant inefficiency in the world’s current food system and taking action to reduce it can conserve the environment, decrease greenhouse gas emissions and promote efficient land and water use.