THE IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY ANALYSIS IN EVALUATING FOOD WASTE PREVENTION AND REDUCTION SOLUTIONS
The Tonowaste project aims to provide a quantitative evaluation method of solutions for the prevention and reduction of food waste, as well as their performance from the triple perspective of sustainability, environmental, social, and economic.
The case of 1 kg of oranges produced and consumed fresh in the EU has been developed as an example, along with the case of transforming this kilogram into packaged and refrigerated fresh juice. (see table 1)
The result of its evaluation according to the previously mentioned method, Environmental Footprint (EU), indicates that the loss and waste of either of the two studied products, both fresh and processed, cause an environmental impact that is mainly manifested in the 'Water use' category, 58.13 μPt for the fresh product and 58.55 μPt for the processed product, followed at a considerable distance by 'Climate change,' 4.19 μPt and 4.61 μPt, respectively.
Thus, it highlights the importance of considering all the impact categories of the Environmental Footprint of the European Commission in the environmental impact analysis.
The solution evaluation process will consider the quantitative reduction of waste along with the sustainability analysis. In the case of the environmental perspective, the information provided by the Environmental Footprint also allows for a weighted determination of the impact categories most affected by the action, enabling informed decision-making accordingly.
By knowing the quantification of the reduction action along with information related to its sustainability, stakeholders in the supply chain can plan, implement, and evaluate the best strategies concerning policies for the prevention and reduction of food loss and waste.
TOWARDS A NEW ZERO FOOD WASTE MINDSET BASED ON HOLISTIC ASSESSMENT
Ongoing | 2022-2027
- Main funding source
- Horizon Europe (EU Research and Innovation Programme)
- Geographical location
- Spain, Austria, Netherlands, Sweden, Greece