Disappearance data

Data that refer to food and nutrients that disappear from the marketplace. The term refers to food and nutrient availability for a population that is calculated from national or regional statistics by the inventory-style method. Usually taken into account are the sum of food remaining from the previous year, food imports, and agricultural production; from this sum is subtracted the sum of food remaining at the end of the year, food exports, food waste, and food used for non-food purposes. Disappearance data do not always take account of food that does not enter commerce, such as home food production, wild food harvests, etc.