Waste generation and management in the food service sector: Evidence from Ghana

Abstract

Managing edible food waste generation remains a promising avenue to reduce global hunger without necessarily increasing production. This paper quantifies the volume and value of edible food waste from the food service sector (restaurants) in Ghana and identifies the determinants. Besides, food waste management practices employed and challenges encountered are examined. The results indicate that nearly 320 MT of edible food is wasted by the 120 selected restaurants in a year. The generated food waste is worth about US$ 2,073,565 per annum. In-serve training of staff, use of power backups, and demand forecast are the determinants of food waste volumes. The restaurants manage food waste through disposal, source reduction, and reuse in form of donation of waste to livestock producers for animal feed formulation. This paper identifies varied nature of food waste generated, high cost of investment in recycling facilities, and high disposal charges as the main constraints to food waste management.