The Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Its Implications for the Global Food Supply Chains.

Food is one of the most traded goods, and the conflict in Ukraine, one of the European breadbaskets, has triggered a significant additional disruption in the global food supply chains after the COVID-19 impact. The disruption to food output, supply chains, availability, and affordability could have a long-standing impact. As a result, the availability and supply of a wide range of food raw materials and finished food products are under threat, and global markets have seen recent increases in food prices. Furthermore, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict has adversely affected food supply chains, with significant effects on production, sourcing, manufacturing, processing, logistics, and significant shifts in demand between nations reliant on imports from Ukraine. This paper aims to analyze the impacts of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine on the effectiveness and responsiveness of the global food supply chains. A PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) approach, including grey literature, was deployed to investigate six key areas of the food supply chains that would be impacted most due to the ongoing war. Findings include solutions and strategies to mitigate supply chain impacts such as alternative food raw materials, suppliers and supply chain partners supported by technological innovations to ensure food safety and quality in warlike situations.

Codesign of Food System and Circular Economy Approaches for the Development of Livestock Feeds from Insect Larvae.

Processes that utilise low-value wastes and convert them to high-value food ingredients systemically add value across commercial operations. Current common disposal options include use as animal feed, anaerobic digestion, composting, incineration, and the worst-case options of landfill and wastewater disposal. The pressure is acute with food manufacturers needing to align with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and reach targets of zero waste to landfill. This research identifies black soldier fly larvae as a bioreactor that converts most food waste into high-value feed materials. Production of larvae and the regulatory framework for their use as animal feed is being assessed in several nations. The requirement to understand the availability of feedstocks for larvae production and the capability to establish feedstock supply chains was tested in this study using geographical information system and life cycle assessment methodologies, providing new research insights for resource utilisation in a circular economy.

Transformational Steam Infusion Processing for Resilient and Sustainable Food Manufacturing Businesses.

Here we show how food and beverage manufacturers report more incisive sustainability and product fulfilment outcomes for their business enterprises when innovative processing technologies are used. The reported steam infusion technology heats food materials within a Vaction Pump device so that steam is directed into the food material within a much reduced volume, reducing the use of steam and processing time. This study reports how such technological interventions will enable supply chain stakeholders to demonstrate responsible consumption by connecting assessments for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions with consumer-focused outcomes such as product quality. The technology reported in this research not only improves operational agility by improving processing speed, but also improves the responsiveness of factory production to changes in demand. Heating procedures are systemic processes in the food industry that can be used to pasteurize, achieve commercially viable shelf-life, and provide cleaning in place. The reported research defines how these technologies can reduce the carbon footprint of products, improve quality attributes, and lower operating costs across supply chains. They provide an important step in developing distributed manufacturing in the food system because the technologies reported here are modular and can be installed into existing operations. The specific technology can reduce energy consumption by 17.3% compared to basic direct steam heating, with a reduction of 277.8 processing hours and 8.7 tonnes GHG emissions per kettle production line each year. Food and beverage manufacturers are increasingly required to report across the sustainability, nutrition, and product quality outcomes of their business enterprises more incisively so that supply chain stakeholders can demonstrate responsible production and consumption. The steam infusion technologies assessed in this research enable alignment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, specifically SDG12, Responsible Production and Consumption, using in situ data logging in factory trials for novel heating procedures used to process foods.

Interacting with Members of the Public to Discuss the Impact of Food Choices on Climate Change-Experiences from Two UK Public Engagement Events.

Food systems contribute to up to 37% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and emissions are increasing. Since the emissions vary greatly between different foods, citizens' choices can make a big difference to climate change. Public engagement events are opportunities to communicate these complex issues: to raise awareness about the impact of citizens' own food choices on climate change and to generate support for changes in all food system activities, the food environment and food policy. This article summarises findings from our 'Take a Bite Out of Climate Change' stand at two UK outreach activities during July 2019. We collected engagement information in three main ways: (1) individuals were invited to complete a qualitative evaluation questionnaire comprising of four questions that gauged the person's interests, perceptions of food choices and attitudes towards climate change; (2) an online multiple-choice questionnaire asking about eating habits and awareness/concerns; and (3) a token drop voting activity where visitors answered the question: 'Do you consider greenhouse gases when choosing food?' Our results indicate whether or not people learnt about the environmental impacts of food (effectiveness), how likely they are to move towards a more climate-friendly diet (behavioural change), and how to gather information more effectively at this type of event.

Testing the data platforms required for the 21st century food system using an industry ecosystem approach.

Testing the planning of resource utilisation across food supply chains provides sustainability and security reporting that can resonate with consumer requirements. The research reported here demonstrates this approach for fast throughput convenience foods that have short shelf life and whose product development must be agile enough to meet changing consumer demand. The higher-level outputs of these conditions are the responsible reporting of nutritional, greenhouse gas emission and packaging impact assessments. Together with the food safety requirements of this food category, it means that manufacturing operations are in some of the most challenging arenas for sustainability assessment. The analysis presented here shows that food production systems can no longer focus on one or two core conditions, such as food safety or quality. This is a strategy of least resistance that has previously worked but it continues to displace risks elsewhere within the food and beverage meta-system, rather than attempting to reconcile complexities and address intra-system root causes. By taking a holistic view the food ecosystem approach can inter-connect requirements using digital and externally linked platforms that will fundamentally change the way future food systems operate. The integration and streaming of these platforms are only achieved through innovation, with the end-user providing development and balance in emergent business ecosystems.

The impact of food preservation on food waste.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the relationship between food preservation and reducing consumer waste is of value in developing sustainable meal options. The research reports insights into Austrian marketplace for frozen and fresh foods that have been obtained from a consumer survey. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The consumer survey methodologies indicate how preservation can change meal planning and lower food waste across frozen and fresh and ambient food purchases using freezing preservation methods. FINDINGS: The results show food waste can be reduced by six-fold when frozen foods are compared with fresh foods. RESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONS: This study highlights the requirement for a greater understanding of the probability that specific foods will be wasted with respect to the frequency of purchase. This is a limitation of the current study that has been investigated by other researchers. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: This research has enabled the identification of different food waste amounts for different food product categories. The data presented could be used to guide food product development so that less consumer waste is produced. SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS: The research suggests a decision matrix approach can be used to can guide new product development and a model of this matrix is presented so that it may provide fit-for-purpose food preservation options for consumers. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: This paper will continue to highlight the overlooked value of food preservation during processing and manufacturing of foods and their preparation in households.

The potential of food preservation to reduce food waste.

While we state it seems unthinkable to throw away nearly a third of the food we produce, we still continue to overlook that we are all very much part of this problem because we all consume meals. The amount of food wasted clearly has an impact on our view of what we think a sustainable meal is and our research suggests food waste is a universal function that can help us determine the sustainability of diets. Achieving sustainability in food systems depends on the utilisation of both culinary skills and knowledge of how foods make meals. These are overlooked by the current food waste debate that is concerned with communicating the problem with food waste rather than solutions to it. We aim to change this oversight with the research presented here that demonstrates the need to consider the role of food preservation to reduce food waste and the requirement for new marketing terms associated with sustainability actions that can be used to stimulate changes in consumption behaviours. We have chosen frozen food to demonstrate this because our research has shown that the use of frozen foods results in 47 % less household food waste than fresh food categories. This has created a step-change in how we view food consumption and has stimulated consumer movements that act across different products and supply chains to enable the consumption of the sustainable meal.

Carbon, food and fuel security - will biotechnology solve this irreconcilable trinity?

The emergence of food security as a key policy issue in developed nations has been concomitant with the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the implementation of Environmental Management Systems in primary industries. Biotechnological interventions such as biorefinery platforms that produce chemicals and fuels provide opportunities to reconcile the security and environmental sustainability criteria increasingly sought after by governments. Indeed, sustainable and more carbon neutral options have been positively benchmarked against scenarios based solely on petrochemical feedstocks. Notably, biotechnology companies are beginning to use Environmental Management Systems employed by other industries to advocate the benefits of green technologies that employ GM, industrial enzymes and bio-materials. Management systems such as Life Cycle Analysis are providing a powerful means to measure benefits and augment change in the biotechnology sector. These methods are discussed here in the context of the emergent 21st Century debates on security. The evidence presented leads to a conclusion where biotechnologies are likely to offer increasingly high impact options for sustainability and security criteria required for food and fuel supply.