Use Of Food Waste Research Articles

Anaerobic Digestion of food waste: Eliciting sustainable water-energy-food nexus practices with Agent Based Modelling and visual analytics

Food waste is a problem for which solutions are recognised but not readily put into practice. What should be the primary objective, reducing or eliminating surplus food production, requires great change within social, cultural and economic structures. The secondary approach of redistributing surplus food to areas of deficit (in terms of socio-economic groups and/or geographic regions) involves a significant logistical burden, and suffers the same issues as with the elimination of waste. The least desirable, but perhaps most practicable approach, is the use of food waste as a feedstock for Anaerobic Digestion (AD). The strategic adoption of AD can therefore be seen as an important step towards mitigating food waste, but the implementation of efficient AD systems on a large (county/region) scale involves significant complexity. The optimal number, size and location of AD plants, and whether they are centralised versus decentralised, may be determined by considering factors such as supply and proximity to feedstock, transport links, emission hazards and social impact. Reaching balanced and objective decisions when faced with such disparate criteria is inevitably very difficult. To address this problem we prototype and evaluate a decision support tool for county-scale AD planning. Our approach is a hybridised Agent Based Model (ABM) with a Multi Objective Optimisation. We capture the spatio-temporal dependencies that exist in the water, energy and food systems associated with energy derived from food waste using Agent Based Modelling (ABM). The use of Interactive Multi Criteria Analysis as visual analytics offers a means to communicate the co-benefits and trade-offs that may emerge, as well as prioritise the AD strategies, based on the prioritization of criteria. Specifically, the method supports exploration of the social, environmental and economic impact of different AD strategies and decisions, linked to current issues, namely AD scale and adoption. The results highlight a trade-off between transport costs and social acceptability for the AD centralised versus decentralised strategies. When low carbon options are weighted higher then slow, steady and aggressive decentralised strategies are the best strategic adoption of AD. Conversely, when Energy production is considered a priority, then aggressive scaling up in a centralised approach is best with slow and steady approaches being further from the ideal. The framework has demonstrated that it permits a space for dialogue and transparent prioritization of AD strategies based on WEF nexus impacts.

Two Wrongs Could Make a Right: Food Waste Compost Accelerated Polystyrene Consumption of Tenebrio molitor

Expanded polystyrene (EPS) is a type of plastic that poses serious impact to the environment. The ingestion of EPS can kill animals and cause harm to the entire food chain. It takes one thousand years for the complete degradation of EPS in nature. Previous work showed that mealworms, the larvae of Tenebrio molitor, are capable of digesting EPS. However, the use of mealworms for EPS degradation is not popular because of the slow rate. We herein report that food waste compost (FWC) is an effective additive to accelerate EPS consumption in mealworms. In our experiment, we investigated the effect of FWC and oats on the EPS consumption rate and lifecycle of mealworms. The effect of FWC on the EPS consumption rate of superworm (Zophobas morio) and greater waxworm (Galleria mellonella) was also studied. EPS consumption rate of mealworm gained a 78% increase when FWC was added. Oats, a common feed for mealworms, increased the EPS consumption rate, but the effect was significantly lower than that by FWC. FWC and oats promoted weight gain and survival of mealworms. A stronger positive correlation between weight gain and EPS consumption was observed in mealworms that were co-fed with FWC when compared with that with oats. In addition, the larval period of mealworms fed with FWC was significantly longer than that fed with oats. Finally, we found that FWC also accelerated EPS consumption in superworm and greater waxworm, but FWC-accelerated EPS consumption by mealworms showed the highest efficiency in terms of mass-to-mass ratio. These findings shed light on a potential industrial application for degrading EPS. Not only could the method degrade EPS in a more efficient manner, it could also provide a proper use of food waste.

Food waste-based pellets for feeding grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus): Adding baker’s yeast and enzymes to enhance growth and immunity

Protein rich food waste could be used as raw materials for making fish feed pellets, which would diminish the volume of dumped waste into landfills. This study investigated the use of food waste (FW) based pellets composing of 75% food wastes derived from plant materials (cereals, fruit and vegetables) supplemented with yeast and the mixture of bromelain and papain to feed grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus). Generally, improved growth performance (in terms of feed conversion ratio, protein efficiency ratio and relative weight gain) was observed in the diet groups supplemented with yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). The most optimal dose was 25 g/kg yeast with enzymes (bromelain and papain, at the ratio of 1:1) and protein utilization was enhanced. Fish immunity was also stimulated, which indicated by the higher nitroblue tetrazolium and bactericidal activities. Moreover, resistance against Aeromonas hydrophilia was enhanced. It is envisaged that food waste could be widely used as feeds for culturing herbivorous fish and adding supplements such as baker’s yeast and enzymes will further enhance the feed conversion ratio and fish immunity.

Street food traders, farmers and sustainable practice to reduce food waste in the Italian context

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how food waste management can affect both retail and distribution operators’ efficiency performance and their ability to create value. In particular, the paper shows how optimizing food waste management characterizes best practices and favors the development of sustainability.Design/methodology/approachBased on a survey of 196 outdoor market operators (including farmers and street food traders) from 27 outdoor markets, the authors analyzed unsold food/food wastage processes vis-à-vis the operators’ behavior and attitude. To provide accurate definitions of the satisfaction levels, a consumer perception survey was carried out, with a usable sample of 2,107 questionnaires. The efficiency performance was evaluated according to data envelopment analysis.FindingsThe results showed that farmers operate more efficiently than street food traders and that the traditional management of unsold food/food waste is an important competitive element in this sector.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample represents the Greater Turin Area in Italy, i.e., thus, limiting generalizability of the results. In addition, the variables analyzed were limited to certain aspects of selling processes and food waste management.Practical implicationsThe results provide some indicators on how a more rational style of unsold food management can improve an operators’ performance and help make a social impact.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that analyses outdoor market operators’ efficiency, based on the use of food waste as a variable affecting their performance.

Features of technology for producing wood and polymer composites by extrusion method

Currently, in Russia, much attention is paid to the recycling and recycling of industrial and household waste. A huge amount of waste is accumulated and not processed in various industries. The bulk of food production waste (beer pellet, alcohol bard, husk) either simply merges, due to the inability of the enterprise to process it, or is used as fuel (husk). In the wood processing industry, there is also no proper processing of the waste (chips, shavings, sawdust). This also includes waste polymer materials, the amount of which increases every year. The relevance of the use of food waste, wood processing, polymer industries in building materials and products is associated primarily with the problems of preserving the environment (they are not subject to decay, corrosion) but also with the problem of resource conservation. At present, the use of polymer waste in the construction materials industry is widespread, and quite an acute problem is the disposal of waste from food and wood processing industries. A particularly promising direction of recycling is the production of high-filled plastics which can be used as construction composite materials. The paper discusses the technology of producing wood-polymer composites by extrusion. It is proposed to use wheat bran, pre-treated with chemical reagents, in the composite in addition to traditional components (plastics and sawdust) in the proposed technology.

Application of lactic acid derived from food waste on pathogen inactivation in fecal sludge: a review on the alternative use of food waste.

Food waste generation and disposal have led to several environmental problems, especially in developing countries. This phenomenon is partly because most cities rapidly urbanize, which results in population increase, urban settlement and waste generation. Improper management of waste has continued to create environmental problems. These problems have indeed interfered with the inadequate measures in managing other organic waste such as food waste. Food waste can be fermented and used for pathogen inactivation in fecal sludge (FS). The continual decrease in global crop production due to soil erosion, nutrient runoff and loss of organic matter has generated interest in using FS for soil amendment. However, due to the high number of pathogens in FS that are harmful to humans, FS must be treated before being used in agriculture. Thus, given the high amounts of food waste generated globally and the lactic acid potential of fermented food waste, several researchers have recently proposed the use of fermented food waste to suppress pathogens in FS. This review presents the various approaches in pathogen inactivation in FS using different types of food waste. On the basis of the literature review, the major problems associated with the generation, collection and application of food waste in pathogen inactivation in FS are discussed. Moreover, the trends and challenges that concern the applicability of each method are critically reviewed.

The future of Swedish food waste: An environmental assessment of existing and prospective valorization techniques

In Sweden, the current dominant valorization of food waste is the production of biogas. However, as current production has low profitability, other options are sought to find more valuable uses of food waste, e.g. as the feedstock for bio-based chemicals. One example is the use of food waste in the production of bio-based succinic acid.In this paper, a LCA study is presented in order to highlight whether biogas production or the production of succinic acid has the lowest environmental impact as valorization option for mixed food waste, and if mixed food waste could be an environmentally preferable feedstock to succinic acid production.The LCA study shows that the environmental results depend on the perspective. From a valorization perspective, food waste has the lowest environmental impact the biogas production. From a feedstock perspective, mixed food waste is an environmentally preferable feedstock to succinic acid production.Although many uncertainties exist because production processes are still being developed, it can be concluded that mixed food waste seems to be a promising feedstock for bio-based chemicals from an environmental point of view, and is of interest to be included in future assessments of bio-based chemicals for the emerging bio-economy.

Techno-economic and profitability analysis of food waste biorefineries at European level

Food waste represents a potential source to produce value-added materials replacing the use of virgin ones. However, the use of food waste as feedstock in biorefineries is still at an early stage of development and studies assessing its economic viability at large scale are lacking in the literature. This paper presents a techno-economic and profitability analysis of four food waste biorefineries that use wastes from tomato, potato, orange, and olive processing as feedstock. The study includes the assessment of potentially available quantities of those waste flows in Europe. Due to the low technology readiness level of this kind of biorefineries, a screening methodology to estimate the investment and manufacturing costs as well as two profitability ratios (the return on investment and the payback time) was adopted. Results show that not all the waste feedstocks have the same potential. The most profitable options are those related to implementing fewer plants, namely concentrating the production and capitalising on economies of scale while being at risk of increasing externalities, e.g. due to logistics of the feedstocks.

Meat Quality Traits of Pigs Finished on Food Waste.

Despite the benefits associated with the use of food waste (FW), there are mixed consumer perceptions regarding pork quality harvested from pigs fed FW. Twenty crossbred pigs were selected for the present study. Ten pigs were fed a conventional diet (control group), and the other 10 pigs were given a conventional diet and FW (FW group) during different growth stages. Meat quality in the FW group showed deteriorative qualities with higher lightness and yellowness synonymous to pale soft exudative meat. Drip loss in the experimental group was significantly higher than that in the control group (p<0.01). The contents of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the FW group were higher and those of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids were lower than those in the control group. The contents of thiobarbituric acid were significantly different between the control and FW groups (p<0.05). There was also a significant difference between the control and FW groups in terms of off-flavor (p<0.05) after sensory evaluation. To conclude, the off-flavor noted, including other inferior pork quality traits, in the FW group implies that FW should not be used as swine feed.

Use of food waste, fish waste and food processing waste for China's aquaculture industry: Needs and challenge

China's aquaculture industry is growing dramatically in recent years and now accounts for 60.5% of global aquaculture production. Fish protein is expected to play an important role in China's food security. Formulated feed has become the main diet of farmed fish. The species farmed have been diversified, and a large amount of ‘trash fish’ is directly used as feed or is processed into fishmeal for fish feed. The use of locally available food waste as an alternative protein source for producing fish feed has been suggested as a means of tackling the problem of sourcing safe and sustainable feed. This paper reviews the feasibility of using locally available waste materials, including fish waste, okara and food waste. Although the fishmeal derived from fish waste, okara or food waste is less nutritious than fishmeal from whole fish or soybean meal, most fish species farmed in China, such as tilapia and various Chinese carp, grow well on diets with minimal amounts of fishmeal and 40% digestible carbohydrate. It can be concluded that food waste is suitable as a component of the diet of farmed fish. However, it will be necessary to revise regulations on feed and feed ingredients to facilitate the use of food waste in the manufacture of fish feed.

Enhanced polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production from the organic fraction of municipal solid waste by using mixed microbial culture

BackgroundIn Europe, almost 87.6 million tonnes of food waste are produced. Despite the high biological value of food waste, traditional management solutions do not consider it as a precious resource. Many studies have reported the use of food waste for the production of high added value molecules. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) represent a class of interesting bio-polyesters accumulated by different bacterial cells, and has been proposed for production from the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW). Nevertheless, until now, no attention has been paid to the entire biological process leading to the transformation of food waste to organic acids (OA) and then to PHA, getting high PHA yield per food waste unit. In particular, the acid-generating process needs to be optimized, maximizing OA production from OFMSW. To do so, a pilot-scale Anaerobic Percolation Biocell Reactor (100 L in volume) was used to produce an OA-rich percolate from OFMSW which was used subsequently to produce PHA.ResultsThe optimized acidogenic process resulted in an OA production of 151 g kg−1 from fresh OFMSW. The subsequent optimization of PHA production from OA gave a PHA production, on average, of 223 ± 28 g kg−1 total OA fed. Total mass balance indicated, for the best case studied, a PHA production per OFMSW weight unit of 33.22 ± 4.2 g kg−1 from fresh OFMSW, corresponding to 114.4 ± 14.5 g kg−1 of total solids from OFMSW. PHA composition revealed a hydroxybutyrate/hydroxyvalerate (%) ratio of 53/47 and Mw of 8∙105 kDa with a low polydispersity index, i.e. 1.4.ConclusionsThis work showed how by optimizing acidic fermentation it could be possible to get a large amount of OA from OFMSW to be then transformed into PHA. This step is important as it greatly affects the total final PHA yield. Data obtained in this work can be useful as the starting point for considering the economic feasibility of PHA production from OFMSW by using mixed culture.

Environmental and health impacts of using food waste as animal feed: a comparative analysis of food waste management options

The disposal of food waste is a large environmental problem. In the United Kingdom (UK), approximately 15 million tonnes of food are wasted each year, mostly disposed of in landfill, via composting, or anaerobic digestion (AD). European Union (EU) guidelines state that food waste should preferentially be used as animal feed though for most food waste this practice is currently illegal, because of disease control concerns. Interest in the potential diversion of food waste for animal feed is however growing, with a number of East Asian states offering working examples of safe food waste recycling – based on tight regulation and rendering food waste safe through heat treatment. This study investigates the potential benefits of diverting food waste for pig feed in the UK. A hybrid, consequential life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted to compare the environmental and health impacts of four technologies for food waste processing: two technologies of South Korean style-animal feed production (as a wet pig feed and a dry pig feed) were compared with two widespread UK disposal technologies: AD and composting. Results of 14 mid-point impact categories show that the processing of food waste as a wet pig feed and a dry pig feed have the best and second-best scores, respectively, for 13/14 and 12/14 environmental and health impacts. The low impact of food waste feed stems in large part from its substitution of conventional feed, the production of which has substantial environmental and health impacts. While the re-legalisation of the use of food waste as pig feed could offer environmental and public health benefits, this will require support from policy makers, the public, and the pig industry, as well as investment in separated food waste collection which currently occurs in only a minority of regions.

The use of food waste as a carbon source for on-site treatment of nutrient-rich blackwater from an office block

ABSTRACTWastewater from office blocks is typically dominated by blackwater and is therefore concentrated and nutrient-rich. A pilot plant was operated for 260 days, receiving 300 L d−1 of wastewater directly from an office building to determine whether nutrient removal could be achieved using food waste (FW) as a supplemental carbon source. The pilot plant consisted of a 600 L prefermenter and a 600 L membrane bioreactor that was operated as a sequential batch reactor in order to cycle through anoxic, anaerobic and aerobic phases. The influent wastewater Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)/N/P was, on average, 1438/275/40 mg L−1, considerably higher than typical municipal wastewater. Treatment trials on the wastewater alone showed that the COD was only marginally sufficient to exhaust nitrate, and initiate anaerobic conditions required for phosphate removal. The addition of 15 kg d−1 of macerated FW increased the average influent COD/N/P concentrations to 20,072/459/66 mg L−1. The suitability of FW as a carbon source was demonstrated by denitrification to NOx-N concentration of <1 mg L−1 during the biological nutrient removal (BNR) cycles. N removal was limited by nitrification. FW also induced the anaerobic phase within the BNR cycles necessary for P removal. The final average COD (non-recalcitrant)/N/P effluent concentrations under FW supplementation were 7/50/13 mg L−1 which equates to 99%, 89% and 80% COD/N/P removal, respectively, meeting the highest nutrient removal efficiency standards stipulated by state jurisdictions for on-site systems in the USA.

Study on Influence Factors in Bacillus Thuringiensis Production by Semi-solid State Fermentation Using Food Waste

Bacillus thuringiensis(Bt) bio-pesticides is a kind of selective and efficient pesticides, but the high cost of raw materials always limits its development, food waste contains superior nutritional elements which could sustain the growth of most microorganisms. So we choose food waste as the material, explored its feasibility of producing bio-pesticides and optimized the influence parameters during the fermentation process. In this work, food waste with 75% water content presented δ-endotoxin efficiency of 862μg/mL, spore count of 2.23×1011 CFU/mL and entomotoxicity of 56560 IU/mg. The influence factors during fermentation process were optimized by asingle-factor indextest, and the result showed that initial pHhad a max effect on the fermentation performance. The optimum fermentation conditions were0.2% inoculum size, 2% salt content, 5% or less oil content, and the initial pH adjusted to 7.0, inoptimized conditions, the δ-endotoxin outputwas2310μg/mL and the entomotoxicity was 56875IU/mgafter fermentation. It seemed to be a promising way to make use of food waste.

Reducing the land use of EU pork production: where there’s swill, there’s a way

Livestock production occupies approximately 75% of agricultural land, consumes 35% of the world’s grain, and produces 14.5% of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. With demand for meat and dairy products forecast to increase 60% by 2050, there is a pressing need to reduce the footprint of livestock farming. Food wastes have a long history as a source of environmentally benign animal feed, but their inclusion in feed is currently banned in the EU because of disease control concerns. A number of East Asian states have in the last 20years, however, introduced regulated, centralised systems for safely recycling food wastes into animal feed. This study quantifies the land use savings that could be realised by changing EU legislation to promote the use of food wastes as animal feed and reviews the policy, public, and industry barriers to the use of food waste as feed. Our results suggest that the application of existing technologies could reduce the land use of EU pork (20% of world production) by one fifth, potentially saving 1.8million hectares of agricultural land. While swill presents a low-cost, low-impact animal feed, widespread adoption would require efforts to address consumer and farmer concerns over food safety and disease control.

Use of food waste as fish feeds: effects of prebiotic fibers (inulin and mannanoligosaccharide) on growth and non-specific immunity of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella).

The effects of inulin and mannanoligosaccharide (MOS) on the growth performance and non-specific immunity of grass carp were studied. Two doses of prebiotic fiber with 0.2 or 2% of the fibers are being mixed into fish feed pellets. Fish growth as well as selected non-specific immune parameters of grass carp were tested in a feeding trial, which lasted for 8 weeks. Fish was fed at 2.5% body mass per day. INU02, INU2, and MOS2 significantly improved relative weight gain, specific growth rate, protein efficiency ratio, and food conversion ratio of grass carp fed with food waste-based diet. In terms of non-specific immune response, grass carp showed significant improvement in all three tested parameters (total serum immunoglobin, bactericidal activity, and anti-protease activity). Adding 2% of inulin (INU2) into food waste diets seemed to be more preferable than other supplemented experimental diets (INU02, MOS02, MOS2), as it could promote growth of grass carp as well as improving the non-specific immune systems of grass carp.

Upgrading food wastes by means of bromelain and papain to enhance growth and immunity of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella).

The fast growing of global aquaculture industry accompanied with increasing pressure on the supply and price of traditional feed materials (e.g., fish meal and soy bean meal). This circumstance has urged the need to search alternative sources of feed stuff. Food waste was used as feed stuff in rearing fish which possess substantial protein and lipid. Grass carp are major species reared in Hong Kong with lower nutritional requirements; it is also an ideal species for investigating the feasibility of using food waste as fish feeds for local aquaculture industry. The growth and immunity, reflected by total protein, total immunologlobulin (IgI), and nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) activity of grass carp blood, were depressed when feeding with food waste feeds without enzymes. However, the supplementation of bromelain and papain in fish feed enhanced the efficient use of food waste by grass carp, which in turn improved the fish immunity. The present results indicated that the addition of those enzymes could enhance the feed utilization by fish and hematological parameters of grass carp, and the improvement on growth and immunity superior to the control (commercial feed) was observed with the addition of bromelain and papain supplement. Addition of 1 and 2% mixture of bromelain and papain could significantly enhance the lipid utilization in grass carp.

Characteristics and agronomic usability of digestates from laboratory digesters treating food waste and autoclaved food waste

Digestate characteristics such as organic and nutrient content, hygienic quality and stability are valuable measures when evaluating the use of food waste (FW) digestate as organic fertiliser. This study compared the characteristics of FW and autoclaved (160 °C, 6.2 bar) FW and their digestates from laboratory-scale reactors. Decreased ammonification and low ammonium nitrogen content were observed in the digestate from an autoclaved FW reactor due to autoclave treatment of FW, which affected the nitrogen-containing molecules by formation of Maillard compounds. The methane potential of autoclaved FW and its digestate was decreased by 40% due to reduced microbial activity as microbes were not able to adapt to the conditions within a reactor fed with autoclaved FW. Both studied materials were suitable for agricultural use in terms of their nutrient content, hygienic quality and stability, and thus the decrease in ammonium nitrogen in digestate from an autoclaved FW reactor supported the use of digestate as soil amendment rather than fertiliser.

Environmental mercury concentrations in cultured low-trophic-level fish using food waste-based diets.

In this study, different types of food wastes were used as the major source of protein to replace the fish meal in fish feeds to produce quality fish (polyculture of different freshwater fish). During October 2011-April 2012, the concentrations of Hg in water, suspended particulate matter, and sediment of the three experimental fish ponds located in Sha Tau Kok Organic Farm were monitored, and the results were similar to or lower than those detected in commercial fish ponds around the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region (by comparing data of previous and present studies). Health risk assessments indicated that human consumption of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus), a herbivore which fed food waste feed pellets would be safer than other fish species: mud carp (Cirrhina molitorella), bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis), and largemouth bass (Lepomis macrochirus). Due to the lower species diversity and substantially shorter food chains of the polyculture system consisting of only three fish species, the extent of Hg biomagnification was significantly lower than other polyculture ponds around PRD. Furthermore, the use of food waste instead of fish meal (mainly consisted of contaminated trash fish) further reduced the mercury accumulation in the cultured fish.

Towards a sustainable use of food waste: influence of urea on biogas production potentials of selected fruit wastes in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

This study evaluates the influence of adding urea on biogas (methane) production potentials of selected fruit wastes. Using standard methodology, the finding revealed that all the fruit wastes are ideal substrates for biogas production. The ultimate biogas yield on anaerobic digestion of fruit waste feeds; avocado, banana, and mango, are 0.48, 0.57, 0.53 l/g VS without urea supplement and 0.76, 0.82, 0.82 l/g VS with urea supplement, respectively. Thus, urea addition improved significantly the biogas yield. However, volatile fatty acids, alkalinity and pH follow-ups showed rapid acidification partly in digesters. The ultimate CH4 percentage did not show significant difference in response to urea supplement. It gave 0. 27, 0.33, 0.27 l/g VS without urea supplement and 0.44, 0.46, 0.43 l/g VS with urea supplement on anaerobic digestion for avocado, banana, and mango fruit wastes, respectively.