The world’s largest market manages more than a third of Mexico’s entire agricultural production.

But such commerce produces vast amounts of waste-a fact that individuals and charitable organisations are taking advantage.

CGTN’s Alasdair Baverstock reports.

Mexico turns food waste into meals for impoverished communities

Mexico is turning its huge piles of unwanted food into meals for the hungry.

Mexico City’s central wholesale market, the ‘Central de Abastos’, covers nearly 350 hectares. The sprawling bazaar manages 35 percent of the entire country’s agricultural output, equal to 40,000.00 tons of produce a day.

The downside,vast amounts of waste – sellers estimate that as much as half a ton of fruit and vegetables that have been rejected by their customers are thrown away every day.

And they said that as much as half of that is still fit for human consumption. And it’s for that reason that a lot of the capital’s more impoverished communities choose to go there, rather than the supermarket, in order to put food on the table for their families. The piles of food waste have not gone unnoticed by charitable organizations either.