The Worldwatch Institute said in 2011 far too many people were living with less than they needed. It says, for example, nearly one billion people were hungry arid just as many were illiterate .     Worldwatch Institute's Danielle Nierenberg said while a billion people went to bed hungry each night, it wasn't because of a lack of available food.     "We produce more than enough food in the world to feed not only the 7 billion people who are on earth today, but 9 to 11 billion people. By 2050, we expect the population to be about 9 and a half billion people and we now produce enough food to feed all of those people. But the question is really one of how do we get food to the people who need it the most. Poverty really delays the progress of allowing people to eat well. Not just getting enough basic crops, but being able to buy fruits and vegetables and the things that will really nourish them," she said.     The director of the Nourishing the Planet Project said besides poverty and a lack of access to food, much food is simply lost. Worldwatch estimates 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted each year.     "20 to 50 percent of the global food harvest is wasted before it can ever reach people's stomachs. And this is really a moral problem when you consider all of the people who are hungry in the world. The good news about that 20 to 50 percent of global food waste number is that it's easy to prevent food waste.We can do it in our homes. Consumers can do a lot to prevent food waste by planning meals better, by not buying too much food. In the developing world there are storage systems that are beginning to be put in place that help farmers protect their food from crop diseases or molds ,"she said. Nierenberg said prevention measures can be put in place all along the food chain.     While it may not seem obvious, the Worldwatch Institute project director said malnutrition  and illiteracy are closely linked.     "When people, especially farmers, don't have the education that they need to live productive lives, they can't learn new skills. And in sub-Saharan Africa, women farmers, especially, don't have access to education. This prevents them from not only learning new cropping techniques and learning new technologies; it also prevents them from being able to get financial and banking services. They can't have bank accounts. They can't buy land. They can't buy the inputs that they need to make their crops more productive," she said.     Nierenberg said despite the many challenges, Worldwatch is hopeful for the future. She says there are a growing number of new projects to address hunger and poverty, while at the same time protecting the environment. What is the good news about wasted food according to Nierenberg?
Storage systems have been well developed to help farmers with planting crops. .Only a little percent of food is wasted before it reaches people's homes. Global food waste can be easily prevented. Consumers have done a lot to help reduce food waste.