A Methodology for Sustainable Management of Food Waste

EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Food

Food waste is still a significant problem today. The Special Region of Yogyakarta contributes 96 tons of food waste daily, with the City of Yogyakarta being the most significant contributor. Food industry services in DIY experience a rapid increase every year. Meanwhile, restaurants and restaurants are the most important contributors to food waste. Yogyakarta City DLH has carried out food waste management activities such as waste bank activities. However, many business actors still need to cooperate, which has resulted in food waste ending up in landfills. Efforts are required to manage food waste to overcome this problem. So, it is necessary to conduct research on food waste flow analysis in food service businesses in Yogyakarta. This research aims to determine the type and quantity of food waste produced and provide an overview of the management costs that occur in restaurants. This research uses the material flow analysis (MFA) method by identifying material flow processes so that it can explore the quantity and type of food waste that occurs at the pre-kitchen, kitchen and post-kitchen stages using STAN software and Sankeymatic diagrams and providing an overview of the total costs in food waste management in restaurants. Interviews and direct observation of restaurants in the eastern and southern regions of Yogyakarta City collected data. The analysis carried out is the flow, type and quantity of food waste and the costs incurred in managing food waste in restaurants. The research results in 8 restaurants in Yogyakarta City in the eastern and southern regions showed that total food waste was 617,906 grams/week. The most significant percentage of food waste at the pre-kitchen stage is lime peel (34%), at the kitchen stage is oil (86%) and at the post-kitchen stage is fish bones (30%). The total costs of managing restaurant food waste are IDR 18,615,000.00/month. The results of this research can be used to predict the quantity and type of food waste in the future so that it can be used to plan policies to overcome food waste.

Under the sustainability domain, food waste is a significant global challenge receiving growing attention. The management of household food waste which relies heavily on landfilling, is predominantly ineffective and unsustainable. To implement sustainable food waste management, an understanding of the individual behaviour is needed since psychological effects often undermine technological solutions. This study direct its investigation on urban households’ sustainable food waste management behaviour by extending the Theory of Planned Behaviour. An online survey was utilized for data collection. Using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling, assessments were made on the determinants of intention and behaviour of 520 households in the Klang Valley. The analysis support two factors that influence attitude positively, while five factors positively influence intention to implement best practices of reusing leftovers, separating household waste, and doing home composting. However, although the households have positive intentions, yet their composting practices seem to be the least adopted compared to the other sustainable elements. Addressing the lack of participation requires a holistic approach via dissemination of educational materials, social media coverage, and awareness campaigns. It is also suggested that composting be incentivized and be included in reward schemes similar to recycling. This study paves the way to enhance understanding of the factors to adopt sustainable food waste management among households in the urban areas. The findings provide insights for policy makers and other stakeholders on what type of information to consider when designing effective food waste management campaigns and urban development strategies, supporting the opportunity for consumer behavioural change.

Effects of moisture content of food waste on residue separation, larval growth and larval survival in black soldier fly bioconversion

Although food waste management has been significant for all stakeholders from all industries globally, research in hospitality food waste management and practices still needs to be further studied, especially in five-star hotels in developing countries. Using the Food Waste Hierarchy, this study proposes to contribute to the knowledge of sustainable food waste management and practices in five medium and large five-star hotels to promote the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Findings of in-depth structured questions from purposive and snowballing samplings show different aspects of sustainable food waste management and practices at these hotels supported by policies and implemented by practices at all levels, from top management to operations levels. The thematical analysis shows four emerging themes: food waste management policies; food service planning, procurement, and storage; food waste handling and operations in the kitchens, staff canteen and restaurants; and food waste management through reusing, recycling, donations, and disposal. The findings highlight these hotels’ challenges and suggestions for sustainable food waste management and practices. By providing the current situation of sustainable food waste management and practices, this study embellishes the guidance and recommendations for the hotels’ restaurants. It augments the industry practitioners with actual practices and solutions in implementing sustainable food waste management and practices in hotels’ restaurants.

The hotel sector is one of the key players in developing tourism industry in the islands, and contributing towards islands economy, employment opportunities and the overall development. However, food waste generated by hotels has significantly impacted the environment, social well-being and tourism economy. Sustainable food waste management practices are vital among the business operations of the hotel sector to reduce food waste and operational costs through efficient use of food resources. The aim of this paper is to examine current practice of hotel operators towards sustainable food waste management from purchasing of food resources to food wastes disposal. The data was gathered using structured and self-administered questionnaires, which involved 42 hoteliers from the island of Langkawi UNESCO Global Geopark. From the main findings, it was found that there was a lack of emphasis from the hotels on their policy related to wastage of food and unsustainable food consumption pattern by their guests. This reflects on the lack of practices towards sustainable food waste management by the hotel sector. Therefore, planning for sustainable food waste management on island hotels is essential to ensure the protection of environmental resources and to reduce the problem regarding limited capacity landfills on the islands.

The hotel sector is one of the key players in developing tourism industry in the islands, and contributing towards islands economy, employment opportunities and the overall development. However, food waste generated by hotels has significantly impacted the environment, social well-being and tourism economy. Sustainable food waste management practices are vital among the business operations of the hotel sector to reduce food waste and operational costs through efficient use of food resources. The aim of this paper is to examine current practice of hotel operators towards sustainable food waste management from purchasing of food resources to food wastes disposal. The data was gathered using structured and self-administered questionnaires, which involved 42 hoteliers from the island of Langkawi UNESCO Global Geopark. From the main findings, it was found that there was a lack of emphasis from the hotels on their policy related to wastage of food and unsustainable food consumption pattern by their guests. This reflects on the lack of practices towards sustainable food waste management by the hotel sector. Therefore, planning for sustainable food waste management on island hotels is essential to ensure the protection of environmental resources and to reduce the problem regarding limited capacity landfills on the islands.

Household food waste is determined by a complex set of routinized behaviors, and disruption of these routines may allow for a decrease in this vast amount of food waste. The current study examines such a disruption of household routines: the meal box. The potential of meal boxes to diminish different types of household food waste is investigated for the first time, across different countries. After providing a framework comparing the effects of different types of meals on food waste, we subsequently examine the effects of subscription-based food supply (i.e., meal boxes) on total meal waste as well as on the different types of food waste: preparation, cooking, and plate waste. Our dataset contains 8747 meal observations from 955 households in six countries. Results from a Bayesian multilevel hurdle-lognormal model with random intercept show that, overall, meal boxes reduce total meal waste in comparison to traditionally cooked dinners (38% reduction). Meal boxes especially lower the occurrence and amount of pan-and-pot food that is wasted (i.e., cooking waste), and also lower the amount of meal preparation waste, yet lead to a higher occurrence of both preparation and plate waste compared to traditional meals. This shows how differences between meals affect household food waste, something that has received little prior research attention. Furthermore, whereas most prior research has focused on overall household food waste, our study illustrates that distinguishing between different types of household food waste can provide important new insights.

The increasing urbanization has led to rising waste and energy demands, necessitating innovative solutions. A sustainable food waste management approach involves anaerobic codigestion with sewage sludge, enhancing biogas production while managing waste. Although this technology has been successfully tested, the biological mechanisms determining its efficiency are still poorly understood. This study leverages genome-scale metabolic modeling of 138 metagenome-assembled genomes to explore species interactions in lab-scale anaerobic reactors fed with sewage sludge to increasing proportions of food waste. The models showed positive correlations with experimental biogas production (CH4: r = 0.54, CO2: r = 0.66), validating their reliability. The dominant methanogen, Methanothrix sp., adapted its metabolism based on feedstock, affecting methane yields, which ranged from 2.5 to 3 mmol/g of volatile solids·h with sewage sludge to 10-14 mmol/g of VS·h with high food waste. The integration of extracellular enzymes into the models highlighted the role in methane production of pectin degradation, protein hydrolysis, and lipid metabolism, mediated by Proteiniphilum sp., Kiritimatiellae sp., and Olb16 sp. The study identified 475 mutualistic interactions involving amino acid, hydrogen, acetate, and phosphate exchange and 44 competitive interactions in hydrolytic and fermentative processes. These insights can help optimize anaerobic digestion and sustainable waste management in urban settings.

The issue of food waste continues to be a challenge especially when it comes to practicing sustainable food waste management in Malaysia. Much attention is needed to overcome the issue of food waste in order to make changes towards the current situation. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the factors related to the urban households’ intention towards sustainable food waste management in Malaysia. Data from 200 respondents was collected through an online survey using purposive sampling method. Thereafter, factor analysis was adopted to analyze the relationship between the factors influencing the intention of households to practice sustainable food waste management. Descriptive analysis showed that respondents from the survey had high intention of practicing sustainable food waste management and the majority of the respondents claimed that it would reduce environmental harm. Based on the factor analysis, the determinants related to the households’ intention of practicing sustainable food waste management were attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioural control, and intention of reducing food waste. To curb the growing issues of food waste, local authorities have implemented various strategies and campaigns to create awareness as well as ensuring practices to reduce local food waste, such as waste segregation laws, building anaerobic digesters for food courts, composting facilities, the MY Save Food initiative, and others. However, the efforts and the efficiency of the local authority to minimize local food waste are still under observation. Perhaps, all levels of the community should increase their cooperation to provide the drive towards a zero-food waste culture in Malaysia.

Sustainable food waste management practices at the source are directly dependent on household behavior. A valid and reliable instrument is needed to evaluate the sustainable food waste management (SFWM) research framework. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to propose a new SFWM framework on a pilot scale before starting the main research. A pilot study was conducted to evaluate the survey questionnaire’s usability and reliability. Respondents from 150 urban households in Klang Valley was surveyed using an online survey method. A detailed validation of the study constructs was done through the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), producing a usable final factor structure. The results confirmed the constructs have good reliability based on the Cronbach’s alpha values that ranges from 0.860 to 0.979. The results provide useful information on factors that could affect the behavioral intention of practicing SFWM in people’s daily life and may be adopted by future research on a larger scale. The article contributes to the body of research in this research context by describing the pilot test method and process. A proposed framework that integrates additional variables into a TPB-based theory was used for examining SFWM behavior outcome in a more comprehensive model. Other studies in the field were mostly conducted on food waste reduction behavior, but this study intends to close the gap of households’ intention to manage them sustainably. Besides providing a new framework for SFWM, the need for a pilot study is highlighted to achieve an improved research design, adding to the lack of literature on pilot studies in the sustainable food waste management context.

Sustainable consumption and food waste reduction have become critical research areas due to their environmental, economic, and social implications. This study employs a bibliometric analysis using Scopus data and VOSviewer to examine research trends, influential publications, and global collaboration patterns in these fields. The findings reveal that sustainable development, food waste, and waste management are central themes, with growing emphasis on consumer behavior, circular economy, and supply chain efficiency. The co-authorship and country collaboration networks highlight strong regional clusters, with Europe and North America leading research efforts, while China and India are emerging as key contributors. The heatmap analysis indicates a transition from traditional environmental impact studies toward policy-driven and behavioral research approaches. Despite this progress, interdisciplinary integration and regional diversification remain key challenges, suggesting opportunities for enhanced collaboration and localized sustainability interventions. This study provides valuable insights for researchers, policymakers, and industry stakeholders to shape future strategies in sustainable food systems, waste management, and circular economy practices.

Food waste and the food-energy-water nexus: A review of food waste management alternatives

Variability of food waste chemical composition: Impact of thermal pre-treatment on lignocellulosic matrix and anaerobic biodegradability

Since food waste is a contemporary and complicated issue that is widely debated across many societal areas, the world community has designated the reduction of food waste as a crucial aspect of establishing a sustainable economy. However, waste management has numerous challenges, such as inadequate funding, poor waste treatment infrastructure, technological limitations, limited public awareness of proper sanitary practices, and inadequate legal and regulatory frameworks. A variety of microorganisms participate in the process of anaerobic digestion, which can be used to convert organic waste into biogas (e.g., methane) and nutrient-rich digestate. In this study, we propose a synergy among multiple disciplines such as nanotechnology, omics, artificial intelligence, and bioengineering that leverage anaerobic digestion processes to optimize the use of current scientific and technological knowledge in addressing global food waste challenges. The integration of these fields carries with it a vast amount of potential for improved waste management. In addition, we highlighted the relevance, importance, and applicability of numerous biogas-generating technologies accessible in each discipline, as well as assessing the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on waste production and management systems. We identify diverse solutions that acknowledge the necessity for integration aimed at drawing expertise from broad interdisciplinary research to address food waste management challenges.