Wasted Food, Wasted Resources? A Critical Review of Environmental Impact Analysis of Food Loss and Waste Generation and Treatment.

Food loss and waste (FLW) comes with significant environmental impacts and thus prevents a sustainable food system transition. Here we conducted a systematic review of 174 screened studies that assessed the environmental impacts of FLW generation and treatment. We found that the embodied impacts of FLW along the supply chain and impacts from FLW treatment received equal attention, but few studies have included both. The reviewed studies show narrow geographical (mostly conducted in industrialized countries) and food supply chain (mostly focused on the consumption stage) coverage. Life cycle analysis (LCA), material flow analysis (MFA), or their combination are the most commonly used to quantify FLW related environmental impacts. More method standardization, integration, and innovation and better FLW data with regional and stage resolution from a first-hand source are badly needed. Among the various proposed mitigation strategies covering technology, economy, behavior, and policy aspects, process optimization and waste management options are the most discussed. Our review calls for a more holistic environmental impact assessment of FLW generation and treatment and analysis of the trade-offs among different environmental impact categories and between supply chain stages, which would better inform relevant policy on effective environmental impact mitigation strategies toward sustainable food systems.

Rethinking food loss and waste to promote sustainable resource use and climate change mitigation in agri-food systems: A review.

The sustainable agri-food system is an important sector recognized for promoting the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals on food security, resource conservation and climate change mitigation. However, the increasing food loss and waste (FLW) along the supply chains has continued to hinder these goals. This study evaluates the trend of FLW research from 1975 to 2022 and how it promotes the achievement of resource and environmental sustainability in agri-food systems. The salient research themes and hotspots that are of interest to researchers were identified. Bibliometric and network analyses were carried out on scholarly research articles from the Scopus database using bibliometrix and VOSviewer. Furthermore, the content analysis was conducted on the selected highly influential articles containing relevant data to understand the role of FLW in promoting sustainable agri-food systems. The results showed disaggregate and unbalanced research distribution on the impacts of FLW among the countries, with China and the United States having the highest contributions. The identified major research themes relating to sustainable agri-food systems are food waste and sustainable systems, food waste management and food waste impact assessment. Moreover, the circular economy was found to be a relatively new approach being explored in agri-food systems to promote FLW reduction and ensure sustainability of resource use. This study highlights the critical role of the impact of FLW in addressing the grand challenge of food security, resource use efficiency and environmental sustainability.

Potential Energy and Environmental Footprint Savings from Reducing Food Loss and Waste in Europe: A Scenario-Based Multiregional Input-Output Analysis.

Food loss and waste (FLW) contribute significantly to the global food system's economic and environmental burdens, including substantial greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, resource depletion, and waste management challenges. In alignment with the European Commission's sustainability objectives and U.N. Sustainable Development Goal 12.3, this study explores the potential energy and environmental footprint savings achievable by halving FLW in Europe by 2030. Using a multiregional input-output model, we estimated the total global energy and environmental footprint savings across all stages of the food supply chain, considering industry-specific FLW rates and proportion weights. The findings reveal substantial environmental savings across Europe, with aggregate savings potentially reaching 51 Mt CO2e (0.09 t CO2e/p), 4,620 Mm3 (8 m3/p) of blue water, 106,446 km2 (179 m2/p) of cropland, 55,523 km2 (93 m2/p) of grassland, and 0.47 EJ (0.54 TJ/p) of energy. The greatest potential for savings was found in Western Europe, specifically in France, Germany, Belgium, and The Netherlands. However, countries with a lower per capita GDP, such as Greece, Croatia, Bulgaria, and Romania, also demonstrate significant per capita savings potential, indicating that wealth does not necessarily correlate with higher environmental savings. Agricultural production emerged as the stage with the highest footprint reduction potential for GHG and resource footprints across Europe, while the foodservice and institutional stages offer the greatest energy-saving potential. Geographical disparities underscore the need for region-specific policies. These results challenge the wealth-sustainability correlation and advocate for adaptable policies that transcend national wealth and accommodate regional disparities, underlining the pivotal roles of the agricultural production and consumption stages in footprint savings.

Determinants of reduction of food loss and waste in Indian agri-food supply chains for ensuring food security: A multi-stakeholder perspective.

With a rising population and increasing concern for food security, food loss and waste (FLW) has become a critical challenge to global sustainability. This paper, drawing on multi-stakeholder theory, aims to empirically identify the key determinants influencing the reduction of FLW in Indian agri-food supply chains (AFSCs) for ensuring food security. A structured questionnaire was used to collect responses from the various stakeholders of the AFSC and then the exploratory factor analysis technique was used to summarize the items into underlying determinants of reduction of FLW in Indian AFSC for ensuring food security. The results of this study reveal that (1) government support, (2) supply chain partnerships, (3) technological support, (4) consumer attitude and (5) top management commitment are the key determinants in the given context. All the stakeholders of AFSC must be aware of these key determinants affecting the reduction of FLW. They must work collaboratively to make a difference by preventing and managing FLW as it is everyone's responsibility to work towards food security.

Quantification of food loss and waste and its percentage estimation along the food supply chain in Korea.

Recent changes and food crisis at the international level have raised the awareness of food security in Korea; however, a problem that seems more urgent than the crisis is the lack of a national strategy for food loss and waste (FLW) in Korea. Moreover, where and to what extent food waste is generated in the food supply chain (FSC) is unknown. This study aimed to quantify food waste through material flow analysis and estimate the percentage of loss and waste at each stage of the FSC. The results revealed that 34.1% of the total supply of fruits and vegetables, meat and cereals was lost and wasted in Korea in 2015. Given that the proportion of edible parts in the food supplied for human consumption usually reaches 94.9%, a considerable amount of the food must have been discarded even though they are mostly edible. Furthermore, 47.6% of the total losses and wastes occurred at the upstream stages in the FSC, which include the agricultural production and processing stages, and 52.4% occurred at the downstream stages, which included the consumption stage, that is, distribution and household stages. In particular, more fruit and vegetable FLW were generated in the upstream stages of the FSC, whereas more meat and cereal loss and waste were generated in the downstream stages. The efficiency of policy implementation can be enhanced if food waste reduction strategies involve focusing more on areas with high losses.

A systematic review of food loss and waste in China: Quantity, impacts and mediators.

Although food loss and waste (FL&W) is high on China's national policy agenda, there is still little scientific information published about how much FL&W exists in China, what its impacts are, and what needs to be done to reduce it. Furthermore, what is known about FL&W across the various hotspots of China's food supply chain is not accessible in one place due to the tendency of scholars to focus on one part of the food chain depending on their disciplinary backgrounds, thereby making it difficult to obtain a 'comprehensive whole supply chain perspective'. Thus, this review provides an interdisciplinary collation of what is already known about FL&W in China. A systematic review of both English and Chinese databases followed PRISMA guidelines further complemented with a qualitative content analysis process uncovered 57 articles. The view revealed confounding factors such as an inconsistency of the definitions and calculation methods used to measure FL&W, and research gaps such as a lack of focus on the behavioral factors pertaining to waste, and the limited range of social innovations studied to reduce it. Thus, this review will help in the development of research agendas designed to advance efforts in this field.

Sustainable food cold chain logistics: From microenvironmental monitoring to global impact.

Food cold chain logistics (FCCL) is a systematic engineering process involving the use of a low-temperature environment to maintain the quality and safety of perishable food and reduce food loss and waste (FLW). From a mechanism perspective, FCCL must balance resource costs for a required level of food quality and safety with the costs of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In the context of global warming, the sustainability trade-off between FLW and environmental impact has recently become an important topic in research on efficient, green FCCL. This is mainly reflected in technological innovation, management optimization, and policy responses. With a focus on three levels (micro, meso, macro), this review analyzes current research areas and the gaps and challenges of FCCL in microenvironmental monitoring, life cycle assessment (LCA), and global impact. Future trends pertaining to FCCL in technology, management, and industry and sustainable development are also summarized. Future trends involving sustainable FCCL must be intelligent, systematic, and low carbon. Industry empowerment through next-generation information technologies (e.g., IoT, AI, big data, blockchain) will promote the multidimensional perception, real-time information transmission, and sustainable control of microenvironmental monitoring, as well as support LCA management transformation from fragmentation to system integration. From a macro level, due to the serious global loss of perishable food, the FCCL scale demand is growing greatly, causing a huge environmental burden. Global cooperation, low-carbon consensus, and appropriate policies will become the basis for promoting sustainable FCCL development.

Country-level assessment of agrifood waste and enabling environment for sustainable utilisation for bioenergy in Nigeria.

It is essential to plug inefficiencies due to agrifood losses and wastes, which pose a significant threat to the sustainable supply of nutritional agrifood commodities/products. Country-specific evaluations of the extent of agrifood losses/wastes, including the pathways and impacts on net agrifood production, are crucial to inform interventions, research, policies and investments. This kind of knowledge is scarce in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries, many of which are food insecure. This paper presents an estimation of and the bioenergy potential for agrifood loss and waste (AFW) - the edible and inedible residual biogenic fractions of crops and animal commodities/products - in Nigeria. Our findings reveal that Nigeria generates 183.3 ± 8.9MT of AFW per annum. About 27% of the average annual total domestic supply of edible agrifood commodities/products is lost before reaching markets/consumers. The intrinsic bioenergy potential of the inedible AFW fraction generated annually in Nigeria is estimated to be 1,816.8 ± 117.3PJ; this is sufficient to meet 2030's bioenergy targets and replace a third of its total (grid, off-grid and self-generation) supply targets. However, Nigeria lacks regulatory, policy and institutional frameworks specific to AFW management. This study recommends a sustainable approach to managing AFW, addressing the interlinked challenges of bioenergy production, public health and environmental sustainability. Besides addressing knowledge gaps in the Nigerian agrifood sector, the information generated in this study is well-timed to inform decision-making and policy formulation on decentralised AFW-based bioenergy interventions to achieve energy supply targets in the country by 2030 and beyond. This study is also strategic to guide future research/interventions that align with AFW utilisation/clean energy generation in SSA.

Modeling the key factors influencing the reduction of food loss and waste in fresh produce supply chains.

The purpose of this study is to develop a comprehensive framework by identifying and analyzing the key factors influencing the reduction of food loss and waste (FLW) in fresh produce supply chains (FPSCs) in developing countries, specifically India. This empirical study has identified eight influencing factors, representing the given context, from the literature (using content analysis) under the purview of management theories (namely, stakeholder theory, capabilities-based theory, and critical success factors theory) as well as data collected through semi-structured interviews from a group of selected experts. Further, Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) technique and Matriced' Impacts Croise's Multiplication Appliquée an un Classement (MICMAC) analysis are used as an integrated method to analyze the identified factors. Regulatory bodies and food policy along with market infrastructure are the most significant factors and have a high tendency to influence the reduction of FLW in FPSCs; therefore, require utmost consideration. The findings of this study are expected to enable managers and policy makers to uncover and understand the key factors. The insights from the findings will help in formulating policies and making strategic decisions regarding the reduction of FLW in FPSCs which will help in attaining sustainable development goals target on FLW.

Reducing food loss and waste: Five challenges for policy and research.

Despite broad agreement in policy circles on the need to reduce food loss and waste (FLW), considerable gaps in information still exist. This paper identifies policy-relevant information gaps, summarizes recent research that tries to fill these gaps and identifies five challenges for researchers, policymakers and practitioners in reducing FLW. The five challenges identified are: (i) measuring and monitoring FLW, (ii) assessing benefits and costs of FLW reduction and the tradeoffs involved, (iii) designing FLW-related policies and interventions under limited information, (iv) understanding how interactions between stages along food value chain and across countries affect outcomes of FLW reduction efforts, (v) preparing for income transitions and the shifting relative importance of losses and waste as economies develop.

Exploring the environmental and economic impact of fruits and vegetable loss quantification in the food industry.

Population growth has stimulated rising demand for agro-food products and economic activity for many years, negatively impacting the ecosystem and non-renewable resource consumption. Algeria confronts the monumental challenge of effectively choosing how to nourish everyone on a more congested globe. However, food loss is a significant issue that worsens as Algerians' population expands and food consumption increases. In Algeria, food production and processing of food items, which include fruits, vegetables, and cereals, generate a considerable amount of by-products, with no commercial exploitation and a negative environmental impact, generating enormous socioeconomic problems. These by-products are essential sources of products with high levels of added value that can be applied in different sectors. They have no studies to measure the scope of food loss in the Algerian food industry. In this background, our research aims to quantify the loss in the Algerian food industry generated by the transformation of various agricultural products, directly affecting the economy and food availability for the population. The research utilizes a mixed methods approach, including coefficients, production statistics transformed, and data analysis; the findings reveal that a significant portion of fruits and vegetables are lost in the Algerian food industry, suggesting that minimizing food loss can help companies minimize costs and mitigate the adverse environmental effects of food production. Finally, the study proposes practical options to minimize food loss to create a long-term food system in Algeria.

Culinary Home Empowerment for Food Waste Prevention and Minimization: Feasibility and Efficacy Protocol.

The purpose of this research is to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a household food-waste prevention and minimization intervention, titled the Culinary Home Empowerment for Food Waste Prevention and Minimization (CHEF-WPM), which consists of a culinary education video series for home cooks. The specific aims are to (1) assess the effects of the intervention at a population level across process (feasibility, usage, acceptability, satisfaction) and preliminary efficacy (motivation, opportunity, ability) metrics and (2) assess the effects of the intervention at a community level across process (feasibility, usage, acceptability, satisfaction) and preliminary efficacy (motivation, opportunity, ability, household food waste, sustainable dietary practices) metrics. The intervention includes eight modules, each containing three to five brief videos, as well as downloadable recipes and worksheets. The evaluation will explore the effects of the program through two distinct investigations, namely (1) voluntary access to the intervention content in a population-based setting and (2) intensive delivery of the intervention content as part of a remote class in a community setting. Evaluation of the intervention in the population-based setting will use a single-arm, quasi-experimental post-test only study design. All home cooks who access the videos will be invited to answer a five-question post-video survey about acceptability, satisfaction, and potential implementation of the learning. A separate sample of individuals will be recruited to participate in a more in-depth evaluation (pre- and multiple post-test survey). Evaluation of the community-based intervention will use a mixed methods study design. Findings from the two distinct evaluation studies will be jointly discussed and triangulated to support larger conclusions about the intervention's desirability, impact on motivation, opportunity, ability, and food waste, and the potential directions for further improvement.

Upcycling imperfect broccoli and carrots into healthy snacks using an innovative 3D food printing approach.

Vegetables are healthy foods with nutritional benefits; however, nearly one-third of the world's vegetables are lost each year, and some of the losses happen due to the imperfect shape of the vegetables. In this study, imperfect vegetables (i.e., broccoli and carrots) were upcycled into freeze-dried powders to improve their shelf-life before they were formed into food inks for 3D printing. The rheology of the food inks, color analysis of the uncooked and cooked designs, and texture analysis of the cooked designs were determined. The inks with 50% and 75% vegetables provided the best printability and shape fidelity. 3D printing at these conditions retained a volume comparable to the digital file (14.4 and 14.3 cm3 vs. 14.6 cm3, respectively). The control, a wheat flour-based formulation, showed the lowest level of stability after 3D printing. The viscosity results showed that all the food inks displayed shear-thinning behavior, with broccoli having the greatest effect on viscosity. There was a significant color difference between uncooked and cooked samples, as well as between different formulations. The hardness of the baked 3D-printed samples was affected by the type and content of vegetable powders, where carrot-based snacks were notably harder than snacks containing broccoli. Overall, the results show that 3D food printing can be potentially used to reduce the loss and waste of imperfect vegetables.

Is Mushy Tuna Syndrome a Growing Problem for the Tuna Industry?

Reducing food loss and waste is crucial for a sustainable global food system and an efficient use of natural resources. Fast-growing tuna provides a key contribution to global nutrition targets; however, reports suggest that an appreciable proportion of the catch is lost from its value chain due to flesh quality issues, one of which is Mushy Tuna Syndrome (MTS). MTS-affected tuna flesh becomes soft and pasty, unfit for canning or human consumption, resulting in high wastage of partially processed material. We investigated the prevalence of MTS globally by surveying the tuna industry using a questionnaire. Of the responses from 32 companies across 14 nations, 97% acknowledged MTS as an issue that predominantly affects skipjack (Katsuwonus pelamis) tuna. The cost of rejects reported by participants from 2017 to 2019 varied greatly, from less than 1000 USD per year to over 1 million USD. The median cost was over 60,000 USD and the average rejection rate was 1.8%. The occurrence of MTS was noted to be seasonal, mainly in the summer months. More than half of the respondents who experience MTS reported an increasing trend of occurrence. Industry perceptions suggest MTS causes are associated with environmental, physiological, and biological factors. The survey results highlight that MTS is prevalent in the industry and demonstrate the need to identify amelioration strategies for the fishers and processors to minimise loss and maximise resource efficiency.

Genus Brassica By-Products Revalorization with Green Technologies to Fortify Innovative Foods: A Scoping Review.

Food losses and waste reduction are a worldwide challenge involving governments, researchers, and food industries. Therefore, by-product revalorization and the use of key extracted biocompounds to fortify innovative foods seems an interesting challenge to afford. The aim of this review is to evaluate and elucidate the scientific evidence on the use of green technologies to extract bioactive compounds from Brassica by-products with potential application in developing new foods. Scopus was used to search for indexed studies in JCR-ISI journals, while books, reviews, and non-indexed JCR journals were excluded. Broccoli, kale, cauliflower, cabbage, mustard, and radish, among others, have been deeply reviewed. Ultrasound and microwave-assisted extraction have been mostly used, but there are relevant studies using enzymes, supercritical fluids, ultrafiltration, or pressurized liquids that report a great extraction effectiveness and efficiency. However, predictive models must be developed to optimize the extraction procedures. Extracted biocompounds can be used, free or encapsulated, to develop, reformulate, and/or fortify new foods as a good tool to enhance healthiness while preserving their quality (nutritional, functional, and sensory) and safety. In the age of recycling and energy saving, more studies must evaluate the efficiency of the processes, the cost, and the environmental impact leading to the production of new foods and the sustainable extraction of phytochemicals.

China Requires a Sustainable Transition of Vegetable Supply from Area-Dependent to Yield-Dependent and Decreased Vegetable Loss and Waste.

China, the largest country in vegetable supply, faces a transition to sustainable vegetable production to counteract resource waste and environmental pollution. However, there are knowledge gaps on the main constraints and how to achieve sustainable vegetable supply. Herein, we integrated the vegetable production and supply data in China, compared its current status with five horticulture-developed countries US, the Netherlands, Greece, Japan and South Korea, using data from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and National Bureau of Statistics of China, and predicted the vegetable supply in 2030 and 2050 by a model prediction. The vegetable supply in China increased from 592 g capita-1 d-1 in 1995 to 1262 g capita-1 d-1 in 2018 and will keep constant in 2030 and 2050. Compared to the five countries, the greater vegetable supply is primarily achieved by higher harvested areas rather than higher yield. However, it is predicted that the harvested areas will decrease by 13.6% and 24.7% in 2030 and 2050. Instead, steady increases in vegetable yield by 11.8% and 28.3% are predicted for this period. The high vegetable supply and greater vegetable preference indicated by the high vegetable-to-meat production ratio cannot guarantee recommended vegetable intake, potentially due to the high rate of vegetable loss and waste. Under the scenarios of decreased vegetable loss and waste, the harvested area will decrease by 37.3-67.2% in 2030 and 2050. This study points out that the sustainable transition of Chinese vegetable supply can be realized by enhancing yield and limiting vegetable loss and waste instead of expanding the harvested area.

Excessive Food Buying in Saudi Arabia Amid COVID-19: Examining the Effects of Perceived Severity, Religiosity, Consumption Culture and Attitude toward Behavior.

The current study builds on both the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) to examine why consumers in Saudi Arabia engage in excessive food-buying behavior amid COVID-19. The study tests the direct impact of food consumption culture, perceived severity of COVID-19, and religiosity on excessive food-buying intentions and the indirect effect through attitudes toward excessive food buying. The results of the inner model using SmartPLS4 showed that the perceived severity of COVID-19 has a direct significant positive effect on attitudes toward excessive food buying and excessive food-buying intention. Despite food consumption culture being found to have no direct significant effect on excessive food-buying intention during the pandemic, it has a direct effect on attitudes toward excessive food buying. Surprisingly, religiosity was found to have a positive effect on consumers' attitudes and excessive food-buying intentions. The results confirm that consumers misunderstood Islamic religious principles regarding food consumption, which does not accept excessive buying or food waste. Attitudes toward excessive food buying were found to mediate the relationship between food consumption culture, perceived severity of COVID-19, religiosity, and excessive food-buying intention. The results of the study are discussed and implications are highlighted for academics and policymakers.

Consequences of Recent Crises on the FLW Consumer Behaviour: A National Wide Representative Research-The Case of Romania.

Research on food loss and waste (FLW) is quite limited in emerging countries, such as Romania, as the phenomenon, its consequences, and implications are not yet properly understood by both policy makers and consumers. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to conduct representative research in Romania to identify the main clusters of consumers depending on their food waste behaviour. By means of cluster analysis, we highlight the main consumer typologies in Romania, regarding their food waste behaviour. The main findings reveal the presence of three distinct segments of consumer typologies based on their food waste behaviour, including low-income young wasters, conscious middle-age wasters, and well-educated mature non-wasters. This study highlights the need for targeted interventions that consider the unique characteristics and behaviours of each segment to effectively reduce FLW at the household level. Overall, this paper provides important insights for academia and for policymakers in the field of FLW management. The food loss and waste behaviour has significant economic, social, and environmental impacts, and reducing it requires a common effort from all stakeholders. Reducing food waste presents challenges, but also presents an opportunity to improve economic, social, and environmental outcomes.

Quality Standards and Contractual Terms Affecting Food Losses: The Perspective of Producer Organisations in Germany and Italy.

With the aim of disclosing the antecedents and dynamics of food loss generation in the upstream stages of the fruit and vegetable sector, this paper presents the results of a series of semi-structured interviews with 10 Producers' Organisations (POs) in Germany and Italy. The content of the interviews is analysed by applying a qualitative content analysis approach, thus disclosing the most relevant issues affecting food loss generation at the interface between POs and buyers (industry and retailers). Several similarities emerge as we compare the answers provided by Italian and German POs, especially concerning the role of retailers' cosmetic specification on products in the generation of losses. Instead, the structure of contracts regulating commercial transactions between POs, industry, and retailers show noticeable differences, apparently resulting in a greater capacity to plan the demand of products from the beginning of the season in the Italian context. Despite these differences, this study confirms the key role of POs in increasing farmers' bargaining power against the buyers, both in Germany and Italy. Further research is needed to compare circumstances in other European countries and to analyse why the similarities and differences identified occur.

Assessment of the Environmental Impacts of a Localized Food System and Food Waste Reduction in a Water-Scarce Region Using Diet Optimization Models.

Despite growing interest in fresh local produce across the United States, scaling up local agricultural development might impose new environmental pressures on increasingly scarce water and land resources in specific localities. Drawing upon the case of the Palouse of the US Inland Northwest, this study evaluates land and water footprints of local foods along with food waste reduction in a water-scarce region. We used both non-robust and robust diet-optimization techniques to estimate the minimum amounts of irrigation water necessary to grow foods locally and to satisfy the local population's caloric or nutrition needs. Our modeling results indicate that, on an annual basis, an increase of less than 5% of the current freshwater withdrawal on the Palouse could satisfy 10% of the local population's aspirational demand for locally grown food products, while more than 35% of local foods (by mass) may be wasted. Furthermore, reducing food waste by 50% could simultaneously reduce water use by up to 24%, cropland use by 13%, and pastureland use by 20%. Our findings not only provide intriguing information for access to local food but could also be used to stimulate new efforts to increase consumers' and retailers' awareness of environmental benefits associated with food waste reduction.