Target Exam

CUET

Subject

English

Chapter

Comprehension - (Narrative / Factual)

Question:

Read the following passage and answer questions


• We are over 7 billion people on this planet, of which 925 million are starving. Yet we annually lose and waste 1.3 billion tons of food – or enough to feed 3 billion people.


• Roughly one third of the food produced in the world for human consumption every year – approximately 1.3 billion tonnes – gets lost or wasted.


• Food loss and waste accounts for about 4.4 gigatonnes of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) per year. To put this in perspective, if food loss and waste were its own country, it would be the world’s third-largest GHG emitter – surpassed only by China and the United States.


• Industrialized and developing countries dissipate roughly the same quantities of food – respectively 670 and 630 million tonnes.


• Fruits and vegetables, plus roots and tubers have the highest wastage rates of any food.


• Even if just one-fourth of the food currently lost or wasted globally could be saved, it would be enough to feed 870 million hungry people in the world.


• By 2050 the world population will reach 9 billion. By then, food production must be increased by 70% to meet the demand. Reducing food losses and waste must be among the main focus areas.


• Global quantitative food losses and waste per year are roughly 30% for cereals, 40-50% for root crops, fruits and vegetables, 20% for oil seeds, meat and dairy plus 35% for fish.


• Inefficient processing and drying, poor storage and insufficient infrastructure are instrumental factors in food losses in Africa. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the post harvest food losses are estimated to worth of US$ 4 billion per year – or enough to feed at least 48 million people.


• Food losses during harvest and in storage translate into lost income for small farmers and into higher prices for poor consumers.


• Food loss and waste also amount to a major squandering of resources, including water, land, energy, labour and capital and needlessly produce greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to global warming and climate change.

Which of the following is a major cause of food losses in Africa?

 

Options:

 Lack of demand for food

 Inefficient processing and drying

 Overproduction of food

 High labor costs

Correct Answer:

 Inefficient processing and drying

Explanation:

The correct answer is OPTION 2 - Inefficient processing and drying

The passage states:

"Inefficient processing and drying, poor storage and insufficient infrastructure are instrumental factors in food losses in Africa."

This clearly indicates that inefficient processing and drying contribute significantly to food losses in Africa, making it the correct answer.

OTHER OPTIONS

  1.  Lack of demand for food

    • The passage does not mention demand as a reason for food loss in Africa.

  2.  Overproduction of food

    • The passage focuses on losses due to inefficiencies, not excess production.

  3.  High labor costs

    • Labor costs are not mentioned as a cause of food losses in Africa.