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

Comparative study of the environmental impacts of used cooking oil valorization options in Thailand

Used cooking oil (UCO) is a valuable resource that can be utilized in different ways. Appropriate management of UCO waste can provide environmental and economic benefits, compared to improper disposal practices. This study assessed the environmental impacts of potential UCO valorization options in Thailand. Altogether, 14 scenarios, including 10 for alternative energy recovering processes (S1-10) and other options such as soap production (S11), use in dry pig feed (DPF) production (S12), synthesis of plastics (S13) and polyol (S14), were considered. The defined system boundaries for each scenario include pretreatment, material and energy consumption, and waste treatment stages for the treatment of 1000 kg UCO. Environmental impacts in terms of global warming potential (GWP), freshwater eutrophication potential (FEP), fossil resource scarcity (FRS), and freshwater, terrestrial, and marine eco-toxicity (FE, TE, and ME, respectively) were analyzed using the ReCiPe Midpoint (H) method. The results revealed that all the current waste valorization options create an environmental burden and contribute towards GWP. Scenarios 7 and 10 showed environmental credits for FEP, FE, and ME indicators while scenario 9 did so for FRS. The processes direct energy consumption resulted in the highest contribution to GWP in Scenarios 1, 5-8, 10, 12, and 13. Environmental effects of material consumption and waste treatments were found to be the highest in bio-oil and DPF production, respectively. However, co-products produced could not offset the burden created by energy and material consumption. Overall, the results showed better environmental performance from energy recovery-based UCO management options compared to alternative processes.

Exploring Greek Citizens’ Circular Thinking on Food Waste Recycling in a Circular Economy—A Survey-Based Investigation

Food waste is one of the biggest global challenges. Thinking and acting for closed-loop cycles for energy and resources recovery is pivotal for meeting the Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 (SDG 12.3) by 2030. In this paper, the multifaceted problem of food waste and Greece’s national policy of circular economy is briefly given. Greece produces the highest annual per capita food waste output (142 kg) in Europe, indicating that the problem is rather large for the country. The solution to the problem inextricably linked to the implementation of the food waste hierarchy, was investigated through a survey integrating the possibility of energy recovery. The tailored questionnaire sent via e-mails and social media with the goal of identifying a snapshot of Greek citizens’ conceptions and practices regarding the management of their household food waste, and their familiarity with circular economy concepts. Results have shown that most respondents are aware of the problem’s existence, however, without considering it as important, according to 1565 responses gathered and analyzed using the IBM SPSS Statistics 27.0 program. Greek individuals are eager to recycle their food waste without expecting anything in return, but the majority seek recommendations on how to do it.

Toward a Cleaner and more Sustainable World: A Framework to Develop and Improve Waste Management through Organizations, Governments and Academia

Waste production is expected to reach 3.40 billion tons annually in 2050. To decrease its negative impacts on the environment generated by human activities, waste management (WM) aims to increase the products life cycle and reduce the use of energy and space. Thus, this work aims to propose a framework with actions to develop and improve WM in the Triple Helix (TH) sectors: organizations, governments, and academia. The framework was developed based on the benchmarking of the technical-scientific scenario and the opportunities and challenges of WM added to the authors' experiences. This study was conducted using a combined method of the literature review and content analysis of articles present in the Scopus database, patents identified in the Orbit database, and governmental actions. As a result, 32 actions have been proposed through the framework, distributed among the TH sectors. The countries analyzed were China, India, and the United States, which highlighted because of the h-index and number of patents published. The main scientific contribution of this work is to add empirical elements coming directly from public and private institutions to the theory about WM, forming a block of knowledge with characteristics closer to reality. The major applied contribution of this work is the proposition of actions to the TH sectors, enabling the development of solutions and technologies to improve WM.

Ideating A Sustainable Swine Feed Prototype: A Qualitative Approach in Farmers’ Pain Point Identification and Product Development

There is a growing interest and trend in new product development (NPD) from food waste. However, most qualitative approaches rarely use the lean entrepreneur concept in the context of new product development (NPD), which allows for understanding customer insight rather than the traditional qualitative approach. Therefore, this study aims to (1) explore the swine farmer behaviors, desired outcomes, and pain points in using swine feedstuffs, (2) select three representative segments and identify high-value customers of swine feeds, and (3) develop a sustainable swine feed prototype from the fermented fish industrial residues. The target users, 24 pig farmers from 11 provinces across the Northeastern Region of Thailand, were recruited to participate in this research. Qualitative in-depth semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis were conducted to analyze their behaviors, desired outcomes, and pain points towards pig feed usages. The framework was combined with in-depth qualitative interviews and the customer, problem, and solution zoom tools. The results revealed that household farmers were the target customer segment of swine feed made from fermented fish industrial wastes. In addition, the findings showed that the household farmers typically fed their pigs with instant feeds and alternative feeds. Moreover, their desired outcomes were the pellet feed with nutrients. Furthermore, the pain points of the household farmers were the expensive cost of feeds and mold in feeds. Therefore, this segment needs to minimize the cost of feeds by using other sustainable alternatives.

The Food for Feed Concept: Redefining the Use of Hotel Food Residues in Broiler Diets

The large quantities of food waste that are generated every year have raised management concerns. Animal diets might be a feasible strategy for utilizing food waste and partially replacing commercially available feedstuffs. The present study examined the potential use of food waste originating from hotels for broiler chickens’ diets. Two hundred and forty (240) one-day-old broilers were allocated into four treatment groups, namely, control (C), non-meat treatment (NM), non-sterilized treatment (NS) and sterilized treatment (S), each with 5 replicate pens of 12 broilers. The experimental period lasted 42 days. Several parameters were recorded throughout the experiment, such as the initial and final body weight, the feed conversion ratio (FCR), the traits, some biochemical and hematological parameters, the weight of internal organs and selected breast meat quality indices. The results showed no major differences in health parameters and the carcass quality traits. There was also no difference in growth rate between the three groups (C, NS, S), but broilers fed the NM diet (without meat remnants) had a significantly lower growth rate by 11.4% compared to the control. Food waste residues can be an alternative feedstuff for broiler chickens and can maintain performance at acceptable levels.

Life cycle assessment and society willingness to pay indexes of food waste-to-energy strategies

Food waste (FW) has received increasing attention because of its immense production quantities and significance to resource and environmental impacts related to disposal approaches. We combined life cycle assessment (LCA) with society's willingness to pay (WTP) index to evaluate energy, water, and environmental impacts on three food waste-to-energy (FWTE) options in China. For anaerobic digestion (AD) mode, the results showed that 1140 MJ of energy consumption could be saved by power generation from methane, power transmission, and biodiesel production from per ton of FW; the cost of climate change for treating FW was 137.8 kg CO₂e t^-1 FW, failing to be climate-sound due to the end life of digestate in practice. The total impact to AD mode in the form of monetized value for WTP was 13.3 CNY t^-1 FW, of which the collection and transportation, pretreatment, AD reaction, wastewater treatment, biodiesel production, and residue landfilling stages contributed by 10.5%, 6.5%, 19.3%, 27.6%, 4.7%, and 75.7%, respectively, while biogas utilization offset it by 43.9%. Notably, a considerable amount of water used in AD prevented it from showing an advantage compared to incineration (-5.1 CNY t^-1 FW), which performed best overall attributing to the generated electricity compensated for primary energy demand, water, and terrestrial acidification to a great extent. Landfilling turned out to be an unappealing FW disposal method due to the low landfill gas capture ratio. Given that AD is touted for its environmental benefits, potential approaches-such as developing a reliable and supportive technology to facilitate digestate recycling into agriculture-were discussed to improve its competitiveness and attractiveness. Our study employed a way to accumulate and compare impact indicators to better interpret FW management impacts and advantages, considering energy recovery, resource recycling, and the environment.

State-of-the-art of the pyrolysis and co-pyrolysis of food waste: Progress and challenges

The continuous growth of population and the steady improvement of people's living standards have accelerated the generation of massive food waste. Untreated food waste has great potential to harm the environment and human health due to bad odor release, bacterial leaching, and virus transmission. However, the application of traditional disposal techniques like composting, landfilling, animal feeding, and anaerobic digestion are difficult to ease the environmental burdens because of problems such as large land occupation, virus transmission, hazardous gas emissions, and poor efficiency. Pyrolysis is a practical and promising route to reduce the environmental burden by converting food waste into bioenergy. This paper aims to analyze the characteristics of food waste, introduce the production of biofuels from conventional and advanced pyrolysis of food waste, and provide a basis for scientific disposal and sustainable management of food waste. The review shows that co-pyrolysis and catalytic pyrolysis significantly impact the pyrolysis process and product characteristics. The addition of tire waste promotes the synthesis of hydrocarbons and inhibits the formation of oxygenated compounds efficiently. The application of calcium oxide (CaO) exhibits good performance in the increment of bio-oil yield and hydrocarbon content. Based on this literature review, pyrolysis can be considered as the optimal technique for dealing with food waste and producing valuable products.

How Environmental Performance Affects Financial Performance in the Food Industry: A Global Outlook

The impacts of environmental performance on the financial performance of food firms are investigated in this paper using a sample of 6064 food companies from 51 countries. The financial performance is measured through sales and internal funds, and environmental performance is based on whether firms have adopted standards related to environmental management. The empirical results show that, for the full sample, food firms’ sales are positively associated with environmental performance, while environmental performance does not impact internal funds. In subsample analyses, this paper finds that the environmental performance of firms in lower-middle-income and upper-middle-income countries has a more significant impact on sales than firms in high-income countries. Moreover, desirable environmental performance significantly increases the internal funds of food firms in most country groups except for high-income countries. Grouping countries by region, we find that environmental performance significantly influences sales in all regions except for Africa. However, for internal funds, it is only substantial in Africa. The results also imply the significance of expanding firm size and adopting foreign technology for food companies to achieve better financial performance.

Strengthening Collaborative Food Waste Prevention in Peru: Towards Responsible Consumption and Production

Inefficient management and handling of organic waste generated by the food service sector is a big global challenge. In addition to the negative environmental impacts of food waste, the effect of the amount of food that is wasted when it is not handled properly is even more alarming. This is particularly when we witness the millions of people who suffer from lack of food and malnutrition. The objective of this research is to examine the situation of organic waste management in food services in the cities of Lima and Tacna in Peru. Using a quantitative methodological approach to waste management, a questionnaire was administered to a sample of 67 restaurants in both cities. The survey results suggest that the restaurants do not carry out the separation or reuse of organic waste. Furthermore, the main methods of disposal include providing surpluses to the staff and sending organic waste to the sanitary landfill and slaughterhouses. There is also a lack of awareness and training about the importance of organic waste management. From the restaurants interviewed, although around 60% claimed to segregate them, only 28% measured organic waste using a manual control and 18% indicated that they weighed the waste for management purposes. As a corrective measure for this deficiency, the production of an awareness video was created to improve decision-making and support change.

Food Waste to Livestock Feed: Prospects and Challenges for Swine Farming in Peri-urban Sri Lanka

Using farm animals for their natural capability of "recycling" food waste (FW) that is unfit for direct human consumption can support a circular economy as shown in the case of Sri Lanka's Western Province. The reuse of organic residues including FW as animal feed is a traditional agricultural practice in Sri Lanka but is less studied within an urban FW context. A survey of piggeries using FW in and around the rapidly urbanizing city of Colombo showed that FW is a major feed source in the farms accounting for on average 82% of total feed. About 40% of the farms collected the FW mainly from hotels, restaurants, and institutional canteens. Urban FW is supplied to farmers free of charge when collected directly from the sources, although 26% of the farmers collected FW via intermediaries against a fee. As FW is collected daily, the restaurants appreciate the reliable service, the farmers the low-cost feed, and the municipality the reduced FW volumes to be collected. However, this triple-win situation encounters challenges such as (tourist related) seasonal low supply, which was exacerbated under the Covid-19 lockdown of food services. Another area of concern refers to biosafety. Although the large majority of interviewed farmers boil FW which contains raw meat or fish, there is a paucity of related guidelines and control. Given the benefits of FW use, it is worthwhile to explore how far these informal partnerships could be scaled without increasing transport costs for farmers, while introducing biosafety monitoring. For now, the regulatory environment is highly siloed and does not support material transitions across sector boundaries towards a circular economy.

Efficiency of microbial fuel cells in the treatment and energy recovery from food wastes: Trends and applications - A review

The rising global population and their food habits result in food wastage and cause an obstacle in its treatment and disposal. Due to the rapid shift in the lifestyle of the human population and urbanization, almost one-third of the food produced is wasted from various sectors like domestic sources, agricultural sectors, and industrial sectors. These food resources squandered are rich in organic biomolecules which can cause complications upon direct disposal in the environment. Conventional disposal methods like composting, landfills and incineration demand high costs besides causing severe environmental and health issues. To overcome these demerits of the conventional methods and to avoid the loss of rich organic food resources, there is an immediate need for a sustainable and eco-friendly solution for the valorization of the food wastes. Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are gaining attention, due to their ideal approach in the production of electricity and parallel treatment of organic food wastes. The MFCs are significant as an innovative approach using microorganisms and oxidizing the organic food wastes into bio-electricity. In this review, the recent advancements and practices of the MFCs in the field of food waste treatment and management along with electricity production are discussed. The major outcome of this work highlights the setting up of MFC for the treatment of higher volumes of food waste residues and enhancing the bioelectricity production in an optimal condition. For further improvements in the food waste treatments using MFCs, greater understanding and more research needs are to be focused on the commercialization, different operational modes, operational types, and low-cost fabrication coupled with careful examination of scale-up factors.

Extraction and profiling of proteins in yellow powder from sweet potato starch wastewater using response surface methodology and proteomic approach

Sweet potato starch industry produce generous high soluble solid wastewater containing various biochemicals such as proteins. The wastewater could be spray dried into a product called yellow powder (YP). Proteins in the YP were recovered and profiled in this study. The extraction conditions were optimized on dependent variables of YP material-water ratio, pH, and temperature using response surface methodology (RSM). Maximum protein yield (61.2%) using RSM were observed at a material-water ratio of 50 (mg/L), pH 9.5, and extraction temperature of 30℃. Subsequently, a total of 25 proteins were identified by proteomic analysis, which mainly were sporamins, β-amylase, starch phosphorylase, polyphenol oxidase, and superoxide dismutase. The extraction and profiling of proteins from YP would contribute to a comprehensive utilization and added value of the wastewater produced by sweet potato starch processing industry. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: This study reported the recovery (61.2%) of proteins and protein profile of yellow powder (byproducts) from sweet potato starch wastewater. These information could contribute to the valorization a yellow powder into high-value ingredients.

LCA and LCC of dried and shredded food waste as an alternative fuel for the cement industry

The scope of this paper is to examine the environmental and economic performance of an alternative household fermentable waste (HFW) management paradigm, developed within the framework of the HORIZON 2020 project Waste4think. In Greece, the business-as-usual scheme for the management of HFW is its disposal in landfills as part of mixed waste. Waste4think developed an alternative approach based on the benefits of source separation. Specifically, source separated HFW is taken to a drying/shredding plant, located in the municipality, for the production of a high-quality biomass product called FORBI. Alternative approaches have been examined for the exploitation of FORBI. In this work, the use of FORBI as an alternative fuel for the cement industry is assessed using life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC) tools. The results show that the proposed HFW management framework performs better than the baseline scenario both in economic and environmental terms. However, focus should be given to the optimisation of the drying/shredding process in order to reduce its energy intensity and environmental loadings.

Life cycle assessment of the food waste management with a focus on the collection bag

The organic fraction (mainly food waste) is typically the most abundant of the separately collected waste streams. The research aims at investigating the influence of different types of collection bag on the environmental performances of the food waste management chain in Italy. A comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) between two alternative systems based on paper or bioplastic collection bags was carried out. It included the collection bags manufacturing and distribution, their use at the household, the transportation of collected food waste and its subsequent anaerobic digestion, including the valorisation of useful outputs and the management of residues. The two systems were modelled mainly with primary data related to the current management system and to tests performed on bags. The LCA was performed with two different modelling approaches applied in the environmental product declaration (EPD) system and in the product environmental footprint (PEF) studies, respectively. In the scenario representing the average conditions, higher environmental impacts are shown by the use of bioplastic bags compared to paper ones with the EPD approach (+257%/+576%). With the PEF approach, the differences between the two systems are lower (-55%/+133%). Moreover, paper bags could allow for further impact reductions assuming a decrease of the food waste collection frequency, allowed by higher weight losses and a lower generation of leachate and odour during the household storage.

Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market Waste: Safety and Nutritional Characterisation for Their Potential Re-Use in Livestock Nutrition

Compared to other food categories, fruits and vegetables are the most wasted. This leads to the squandering of economic, social, and environmental resources. The reallocation of fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) into animal feed contributes to the sustainability of livestock production, reducing the impact of feed production for land use. In this study, the fruit and vegetable waste from the General Wholesale Market of Milan was considered. FVW samples were collected for one year and were analysed for safety parameters and nutritional, vitamin, and mineral composition. Data showed that dry matter (DM) was on average 10.82 ± 1.21% and neutral detergent fibre (NDF) was on average 22.43 ± 4.52% DM. The presence of soluble sugars (30.51 ± 7.61% DM, on average) was also detected. However, the high moisture content of this waste makes it easily perishable, with detrimental effects on quality, storage, and transportation. A strategy was therefore proposed to reduce the water content of FVW by pressing. Overall, the results highlighted the significant nutritional value of FVW from the wholesale market and the need to develop appropriate technologies to maintain the food chain line safe.

Quantifying global warming potential of alternative biorefinery systems for producing fuels from Chinese food waste

Biorefining of Chinese food waste (FW) into transport fuels was assessed in terms of amount of fuel produced and over all Global Warming Potential (GWP) for six different scenarios including biogas, biomethane, bioethanol and biodiesel in different combinations. The life-cycle perspective used included GWP aspects of material and energy use, emissions during biorefining and management of residues, as well as substitution of fossil fuels according to the energy content of biofuels. All of the six FW biorefineries revealed savings in GWP ranging from -19 to -138 kg CO₂ eqv. per ton of wet FW. Compared to the reference scenario with only anaerobic digestion (S0), introducing biogas upgrading to biomethane (S1) improved the GWP by 37%; while producing bioethanol prior to anaerobic digestion (S2) decreased the savings in GWP. Introducing biodiesel prior to anaerobic digestion (S3) revealed around 60% improvement in GWP, while combining biodiesel and biomethane gave the largest improvement in GWP, 84% compared to the reference scenario, and the most fuels (around 2400 MJ in terms of 30 kg biodiesel and 35 kg biomethane per ton of wet FW). A sensitivity analysis revealed that the electricity production based on the biogas was an important parameter and appears in all refineries, while the results was less sensitive to the production of biodiesel and biomethane. The residue management contributed also to the GWP, but did not vary much among the biorefinery scenarios.

Human food waste to animal feed: opportunities and challenges

By 2050, the demand for animal protein is estimated to increase by 70%. Concurrently, United Nations (UN) member countries have committed to reduce food waste by 50% by 2030. Moreover, even if the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change dietary-change recommendations are followed, measures to produce food and animal feed more efficiently will become increasingly important in creating a more sustainable food future. Currently, livestock animals consume over a third of global grain production. However, livestock animals, including insects, could function as efficient bioprocessors for converting unavoidable food waste into valuable animal protein. Establishing such a circular food system would simultaneously reduce both the negative environmental impacts of food waste going to landfill and intensive livestock production, as well as meet the need for increased livestock feed. To be successful in establishing a food waste to livestock feed industry, it will be critical to ensure that feed safety is appropriately regulated to prevent adverse animal health, welfare, biosecurity, food safety, economic, market access and food insecurity outcomes. Currently, regulatory frameworks in most industrialised countries either prohibit feeding of food waste to livestock or limit the wastes permissible. However, there is a growing body of knowledge showing that if the correct processing and safety measures are implemented, that food waste from retail and food service can be effectively and safety utilised in commercial production systems. The Japanese have developed a successful food waste to pig feed industry, based on both liquid and dry feeding systems, which is regulated and encouraged under national policy. They have developed licenced ‘Ecofeed’-branded products, and the pork industry has not been negatively affected by emergency animal diseases through this feeding practice. If other countries are to establish similar food waste to livestock feed industries, then strategies to mitigate food safety and biosecurity concerns will need to be developed and implemented. Regional techno-economic analysis will also be required to assess industry profitability and determine the potential investment required for new collection, storage and feed production infrastructure. Furthermore, legislation, based on scientifically robust research, will be required to incentivise food-waste producers and the livestock industry to actively engage and drive change.

The prospects of waste management in the hospitality sector post COVID-19

COVID-19 has imposed significant detrimental effects on the global hospitality sector. These effects have primarily been considered from the socio-economic perspective, ignoring the implications of the pandemic for the environmental performance of hospitality services. By drawing upon emerging evidence from various academic and non-academic sources, this conceptual paper critically evaluates the implications of the preventative and protective measures adopted against COVID-19 for the generation of the hospitality sector's food and plastic waste. The implications are divided into direct and indirect and considered through the prism of temporality of their anticipated occurrence (immediate, short-term and medium-term perspective). The paper proposes potential strategies to aid in the management of these wastes in the hospitality sector in a post-pandemic world. To address the issue of food waste, the hospitality sector should be integrated into alternative food networks (AFNs) and short food supply chains (SFSCs). Business coopetition between hospitality enterprises and other actors of the food supply chain is necessary for the success of such integration. To address the issue of plastic waste, the hospitality sector should invest in 'green' innovation. This investment needs to be encouraged and supported by targeted policy interventions. The paper argues that these strategies are critical not only in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, but will also remain valid for the sustained development of the hospitality sector in light of future disastrous events, especially climate change. The paper discusses the institutional and organisational prerequisites for the effective implementation of these strategies and highlights the related research opportunities.

Environmental benefits of pet food obtained as a result of the valorisation of meat fraction derived from packaged food waste

The 2030 Agenda of the United Nations includes the objective of setting up sustainable production patterns by pursuing several Sustainable Development Goals. Among them, the "Responsible production and consumption" is a key topic in the food production and is strictly connected with the "Climate action"; the crucial point, however, is how to jointly act on all these aspects and apply them in practice. The waste yearly produced in the food chain represent both an ethical, economic and environmental issue. In particular, as far as the recovery of packaged food waste from retailers is concerned, the valorisation of the wasted meat is an extremely relevant issue. Pet food industries could be interested in valorising this waste fraction to replace meat coming from slaughters in their product recipes. This article evaluates the environmental impact of valorising meat fraction from packaged food waste to produce two different recipes of high quality pet food, called Natura and Pâté. A life cycle assessment of the current scenario (traditional pet food production and landfilling of packaged food waste) and of a new one (pet food production using meat fraction from packaged food waste) is carried out applying the ReCiPe 2016 method of impact assessment. Real data have been taken from retailers and pet food manufacturer. The production of pet food using the meat fraction from packaged food waste generates on average lower environmental impacts if compared to the traditional process, in terms of GWP (-56.40%), water consumption (-22.62%), land use (-87.50%) and fossil resource scarcity (-21.78%). Benefits are interesting even if considering the production of Pâté (-14.66%), for which the traditional production process makes use of some slaughter by-products. The proposed industrial process is demonstrated to be sustainable from an environmental point of view and appears to be in line with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2, 12 and 13.

Assessing the multiple resource use associated with pig feed consumption in the European Union

Feed consumption is responsible for the largest shares of resource use required for producing pork. In the European Union (EU), a meat consumption decrease is expected in combination with a growth of meat production driven by foreign demand. This paper presents a multiple environmental assessment of the resource use linked to EU pig feed by performing a material flow analysis of each single feed item constituting the EU pig diet. The global relevance and the trade-driven interlinkages are disclosed by considering the country-specific resource efficiencies of 254 territories. Our analysis reveals that in 2017 a total resource use of 14.5 Mha of land, 51.9 Gm3 of green water, 3.9 Gm3 of blue water, 1.23 Mtonnes of nitrogen, 0.35 Mtonnes of phosphorous, and 0.34 Mtonnes of potassium was required to satisfy the EU demand of pig feed. Wheat-based products accounted for the largest share of land use (32%), green water (35%), nitrogen and phosphorous from fertilizer use (44% and 28%, respectively). Also soybean accounted for a significant share of land use (15%), green water (20%) and phosphorous from fertilizer use (25%). Moreover, soybean-related feed items contributed the most to the potassium use (24%). While the domestic production of cereals satisfied the demand, protein-based ingredients such as soybean were largely imported, mainly from South America, outsourcing the related environmental burden. Moreover, most of the feed from extra-EU countries resulted with higher resource use intensities than EU implying a potential resource saving if feed was domestically produced. Results obtained are discussed in relation to the many constraints that limit the possibility of increasing the EU feed production and promising alternative solutions. In particular, while some solutions seem promising in terms of savings, the current EU regulation needs to be redesigned to allow their implementation and the achievement of ambitious EU targets.

The food for feed concept. Performance of broilers fed hotel food residues

1. In recent times the use of food waste in animal diets has gained considerable attention because of the increasing demand to cover the needs of human population and the high prices of conventional, arable based, animal feeds.2. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of adding dried human food waste to the diet of meat-type chickens (broilers). Two hundred, one-day-old broilers were divided into two treatment groups, with 10 replicate pens containing 10 birds per pen. The duration of the study was 42 days. In the control (C), the diet did not contain any food waste, whereas in the second treatment (T) food waste residues from hotels made up 15% of the diet. Diets had similar crude protein and metabolisable energy content.3. Feed intake and body weight were recorded in order to calculate weight gain and feed conversion ratio (FCR). Carcase and breast muscle yield, the weight of selected internal organs and the level of selected biochemical and haematological parameters were determined. Quality of breast muscle meat was assessed.4. Broilers fed the control treatment consumed more feed and gained more weight compared to broilers fed waste; however, the FCR was similar. No major differences were seen for internal organ weights and haematological parameters, although some differences were observed in colour traits and shear force of meat. It was concluded that there is a potential for use of food waste in broiler diets.

Food waste valorization: Energy production using novel integrated systems

Management of food waste (FW) is a global challenge due to increasing population and economic activities. Presently, landfill and incineration are the keyways of FW management, while economical and environmental sustainability have been an issue. Therefore, the biological processes have been investigated for resource and energy recovery from FW. However, these biological approaches have certain drawbacks and cannot be a complete solution for FW management. Therefore, this review aims to offer a detailed and complete analysis of current available technologies to achieve environmental and economical sustainability. In this context, zero solid waste discharge for resource and energy recovery has been put into view. Corresponding to which several innovative technologies using integrated biological methods for resource and energy recovery from FW have been elucidated.

Co-pyrolysis of food waste and wood bark to produce hydrogen with minimizing pollutant emissions

In this study, the co-pyrolysis of food waste with lignocellulosic biomass (wood bark) in a continuous-flow pyrolysis reactor was considered as an effective strategy for the clean disposal and value-added utilization of the biowaste. To achieve this aim, the effects of major co-pyrolysis parameters such as pyrolysis temperature, the flow rate of the pyrolysis medium (nitrogen (N₂) gas), and the blending ratio of food waste/wood bark on the yields, compositions, and properties of three-phase pyrolytic products (i.e., non-condensable gases, condensable compounds, and char) were investigated. The temperature and the food waste/wood bark ratio were found to affect the pyrolytic product yields, while the N₂ flow rate did not. More non-condensable gases and less char were produced at higher temperatures. For example, as the temperature was increased from 300 °C to 700 °C, the yield of non-condensable gases increased from 6.3 to 17.5 wt%, while the yield of char decreased from 63.6 to 30.6 wt% for the co-pyrolysis of food waste and wood bark at a weight ratio of 1:1. Both the highest yield of hydrogen (H₂) gas and the most significant suppression of the formation of phenolic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds were achieved with a combination of food waste and wood bark at a weight ratio of 1:1 at 700 °C. The results suggest that the synergetic effect of food waste and lignocellulosic biomass during co-pyrolysis can be exploited to increase the H₂ yield while limiting the formation of phenolic compounds and PAH derivatives. This study has also proven the effectiveness of co-pyrolysis as a process for the valorization of biowaste that is produced by agriculture, forestry, and the food industry, while reducing the formation of harmful chemicals.

A Review of Eco-Innovations and Exports Interrelationship, with Special Reference to International Agrifood Supply Chains

Growing environmental awareness in recent years has led to greater efforts by companies and governments to promote eco-innovation, which is becoming an increasingly competitive factor in international supply chains. However, the interrelationships between exports and eco-innovation have not yet been studied in sufficient depth. As such, the purpose of this work is to analyze the influence that exists between these two variables, both at a business or micro level and at a country/region or macro level, and the most influential factors, such as country of origin and sector of activity, among others. To this end, 60 publications have been reviewed from 1996 to 2019 from a global perspective, to analyze the characteristics that define them and both the existing relationship and impact generated by the two variables being studied within international supply chains. The results show that, in general, there is a positive bidirectional relationship, influenced by several factors, such as social performance, environmental regulation, cooperation strategies, employment level, or business size. Additionally, there is a growing interest in this issue within the agrifood sector, as the benefits of an appropriate environmental policy based on innovation to promote exports are of great importance. Finally, a series of recommendations are made for future research that is able to serve scholars, companies and also policy makers.

The Potential of Selected Agri-Food Loss and Waste to Contribute to a Circular Economy: Applications in the Food, Cosmetic and Pharmaceutical Industries

The food sector includes several large industries such as canned food, pasta, flour, frozen products, and beverages. Those industries transform agricultural raw materials into added-value products. The fruit and vegetable industry is the largest and fastest-growing segment of the world agricultural production market, which commercialize various products such as juices, jams, and dehydrated products, followed by the cereal industry products such as chocolate, beer, and vegetable oils are produced. Similarly, the root and tuber industry produces flours and starches essential for the daily diet due to their high carbohydrate content. However, the processing of these foods generates a large amount of waste several times improperly disposed of in landfills. Due to the increase in the world’s population, the indiscriminate use of natural resources generates waste and food supply limitations due to the scarcity of resources, increasing hunger worldwide. The circular economy offers various tools for raising awareness for the recovery of waste, one of the best alternatives to mitigate the excessive consumption of raw materials and reduce waste. The loss and waste of food as a raw material offers bioactive compounds, enzymes, and nutrients that add value to the food cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. This paper systematically reviewed literature with different food loss and waste by-products as animal feed, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical products that strongly contribute to the paradigm shift to a circular economy. Additionally, this review compiles studies related to the integral recovery of by-products from the processing of fruits, vegetables, tubers, cereals, and legumes from the food industry, with the potential in SARS-CoV-2 disease and bacterial diseases treatment.

Influence of the Heating Method on the Efficiency of Biomethane Production from Expired Food Products

The aim of the study was to determine the effect of heating with microwave electromagnetic radiation (EMR) on the efficiency of the methane fermentation (MF) of expired food products (EFP). The research was inspired by the positive effect of EMR on the production of biogas and methane from different organic substrates. The experiment was carried out on a laboratory scale in fully mixed, semi-continuous anaerobic reactors. The technological conditions were as follows: temperature, 35 ± 1 °C; organic load rate (OLR), 2.0 kgVS·m−3∙d−1; and hydraulic retention time (HRT), 40 days. The source of the EMR was a magnetron (electric power, 300 W). There was no statistically significant influence of the use of EMR on the achieved technological effects of MF. The efficiency of biogas production was 710 ± 35 dm3·kgVS−1 in the variant with EMR and 679 ± 26 dm3·kgVS−1 in the variant with convection heating (CH). The methane contents were 63.5 ± 2.4% (EMR) and 62.4 ± 4.0% (CH), and the cumulative methane production after 40 days was 271.2 and 288.6 dm3CH4, respectively.

A review on recovery of proteins from industrial wastewaters with special emphasis on PHA production process: Sustainable circular bioeconomy process development

The economy of the polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production process could be supported by utilising the different by-products released simultaneously during its production. Among these, proteins are present in high concentrations in liquid stream which are released after the cell disruption along with PHA granules. These microbial proteins can be used as animal feed, adhesive material and in manufacturing of bioplastics. The recycling of the protein containing liquid stream also serves as a promising approach to maintain circular bioeconomy in the route. For this aim, it is important to obtain good yield and limit the drawbacks of protein recovery processes and associated costs. The review focuses on recycling of the liquid stream generated during acid/thermal-alkali treatment for PHA production that would close the gap in linear economy and attain circularity in the process. Examples to recover proteins from other industrial waste streams along with their applications have also been discussed.

“What a Waste”—Can We Improve Sustainability of Food Animal Production Systems by Recycling Food Waste Streams into Animal Feed in an Era of Health, Climate, and Economic Crises?

Food waste has been a major barrier to achieving global food security and environmental sustainability for many decades. Unfortunately, food waste has become an even bigger problem in many countries because of supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic and African Swine Fever epidemic. Although Japan and South Korea have been leaders in recycling food waste into animal feed, countries that produce much greater amounts of food waste, such as the United States and the European Union, have lagged far behind. Concerns about the risk of transmission of bacteria, prions, parasites, and viruses have been the main obstacles limiting the recycling of food waste streams containing animal-derived tissues into animal feed and have led to government regulations restricting this practice in the U.S. and EU. However, adequate thermal processing is effective for inactivating all biological agents of concern, perhaps except for prions from infected ruminant tissues. The tremendous opportunity for nitrogen and phosphorus resource recovery along with several other environmental benefits from recycling food waste streams and rendered animal by-products into animal feed have not been fully appreciated for their substantial contribution toward solving our climate crisis. It is time to revisit our global approach to improving economic and environmental sustainability by more efficiently utilizing the abundant supply of food waste and animal tissues to a greater extent in animal feed while protecting human and animal health in food animal production systems.

European Union Legislation Overview about Used Vegetable Oils Recycling: The Spanish and Italian Case Studies

The employment of used vegetable oils (UVOs) as raw materials in key sectors as energy production or bio-lubricant synthesis represents one of the most relevant priorities in the European Union (EU) normative context. In many countries, the development of new production processes based on the circular economy model, as well as the definition of future energy and production targets, involve the utilization of wastes as raw material. In this context, the main currently applied EU regulations are presented and discussed. As in the EU, the general legislative process consists of the definition in each State Member of specific legislation, which transposes the EU indications. Two relevant countries are herein considered: Italy and Spain. Through the analysis of the conditions required in both countries for UVOs’ collection, disposal, storage, and recycling, a wide panorama of the current situation is provided.

Mapping the Structure of Food Waste Management Research: A Co-Keyword Analysis

Food loss and waste represent a global problem in the ethical, social, environmental, and economic contexts. The aim of this article is to identify leading concepts in studies on food loss and waste in management research by network analysis of the co-occurrence of keywords, via mapping of knowledge domains, a method used in bibliometrics. We analyzed 2202 records from the Scopus database on food waste management with the aid of the VOSviewer software tool. In particular, keyword co-occurrence analysis was adopted to visually explore knowledge bases, topic distribution, and research fronts in the field of food waste management research. Ten representative areas were found concentrated in main keywords, namely, food waste, waste management, food, anaerobic digestion, waste disposal, recycling, waste treatment, municipal solid waste, solid waste, and refuse disposal.

Fruit and vegetable waste management: Conventional and emerging approaches

Valorization of Fruit and Vegetable Wastes (FVW) is challenging owing to logistic-related problems, as well as to their perishable nature and heterogeneity, among other factors. In this work, the main existing routes for food waste valorization are critically reviewed. The study focuses on FVW because they constitute an important potential source for valuable natural products and chemicals. It can be concluded that FVW management can be carried out following different processing routes, though nowadays the best solution is to find an adequate balance between conventional waste management methods and some emerging valorization technologies. Presently, both conventional and emerging technologies must be considered in a coordinated manner to enable an integral management of FVW. By doing so, impacts on food safety and on the environment can be minimized whilst wasting of natural resources is avoided. Depending on the characteristics of FVW and on the existing market demand, the most relevant valorization options are extraction of bioactive compounds, production of enzymes and exopolysaccharides, synthesis of bioplastics and biopolymers and production of biofuels. The most efficient emergent processing technologies must be promoted in the long term, in detriment of the conventional ones used nowadays. In consequence, future integral valorization of FVW will probably comprise two stages: direct processing of FVW into value-added products, followed by processing of the residual streams, byproducts and leftover matter by means of conventional waste management technologies.

Prospects for sustainability of pig production in relation to climate change and novel feed resources

Pig production systems provide multiple benefits to humans. However, the global increase in meat consumption has profound consequences for our earth. This perspective describes two alternative scenarios for improving the sustainability of future pig production systems. The first scenario is a high input-high output system based on sustainable intensification, maximizing animal protein production efficiency on a limited land surface at the same time as minimizing environmental impacts. The second scenario is a reduced input-reduced output system based on selecting animals that are more robust to climate change and are better adapted to transform low quality feed (local feeds, feedstuff co-products, food waste) into meat. However, in contrast to the first scenario, the latter scenario results in reduced predicted yields, reduced production efficiency and possibly increased costs to the consumer. National evaluation of the availability of local feed and feedstuff co-product alternatives, determination of limits to feed sourced from international markets, available land for crop and livestock production, desired production levels, and a willingness to politically enforce policies through subsidies and/or penalties are some of the considerations to combine these two scenarios. Given future novel sustainable alternatives to livestock animal protein, it may become reasonable to move towards an added general premium price on 'protein from livestock animals' to the benefit of promoting higher incomes to farmers at the same time as covering the extra costs of, politically enforced, welfare of livestock animals in sustainable production systems. © 2020 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Immobilization mechanism of Se oxyanions in geopolymer: Effects of alkaline activators and calcined hydrotalcite additive

Geopolymers have been widely adopted to stabilize the cationic pollutants. However, few studies have focused on the immobilization of anionic species. In this study, the immobilization of SeO₃^2- and SeO₄^2- was explored for the first time using geopolymer activated by different alkaline solutions (NaOH and Na₂SiO₃) with and without calcined hydrotalcite (CHT), characterized by TCLP, XRD, FTIR, TG, NMR, XAFS, and N₂ adsorption-desorption isotherm. Na₂SiO₃-activated geopolymers without CHT additive showed lower leaching percentages of SeO₃^2- and SeO₄^2- (approximately 10 % and 18 %) than NaOH-activated geopolymers (approximately 58 % and 74 %). It has been proven that electrostatic interaction is the main association mode of SeO₃^2- and SeO₄^2- in both NaOH- and Na₂SiO₃-activated geopolymers. Hence, compactness plays a vital role in the Se leaching from geopolymer. The addition of CHT reduced the compactnesses of both NaOH- and Na₂SiO₃-geopolymers. Due to the formation of hydrotalcite, the CHT additive contributed to immobilize SeO₃^2- and SeO₄^2- in NaOH-activated geopolymers. However, this phenomenon was not observed in Na₂SiO₃-activated geopolymers. Thus, the leaching amount of Se greatly increased from Na₂SiO₃-activated geopolymers with CHT additive. This study provides new insights on the application of geopolymer to immobilize anionic pollutants.

Bioactive Compounds in Food Waste: A Review on the Transformation of Food Waste to Animal Feed

Bioactive compounds are substances which are present in foods in small amounts and have the ability to provide health benefits. Bioactive compounds include but are not limited to long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins, carotenoids, peptides, and polyphenols. The aim of the present study is to review literature for potential bioactive compounds present in food waste material and discuss the transformation of food waste to animal feed under the perspective that usage of food waste, rather than disposal, may tackle food insecurity and provide health benefits. Finally, applications in poultry and swine nutrition, with emphasis on the presence of fatty acids on food waste material, are discussed.

Life Cycle Assessment of Dietary Patterns in the United States: A Full Food Supply Chain Perspective

A tiered hybrid input–output-based life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted to analyze potential environmental impacts associated with current US food consumption patterns and the recommended USDA food consumption patterns. The greenhouse gas emissions (GHGEs) in the current consumption pattern (CFP 2547 kcal) and the USDA recommended food consumption pattern (RFP 2000 kcal) were 8.80 and 9.61 tons CO2-eq per household per year, respectively. Unlike adopting a vegetarian diet (i.e., RFP 2000 kcal veg or RFP 2600 kcal veg), adoption of a RFP 2000 kcal diet has a probability of increasing GHGEs and other environmental impacts under iso-caloric analysis. The bigger environmental impacts of non-vegetarian RFP scenarios were largely attributable to supply chain activities and food losses at retail and consumer levels. However, the RFP 2000 vegetarian diet showed a significant reduction in the environmental impacts (e.g., GHGEs were 22% lower than CFP 2547). Uncertainty analysis confirmed that the RFP 2600 scenario (mean of 11.2; range 10.3–12.4 tons CO2-eq per household per year) is higher than CFP 2547 (mean of 8.81; range 7.89–9.95 tons CO2-eq per household per year) with 95% confidence. The outcomes highlight the importance of incorporating environmental sustainability into dietary guidelines through the entire life cycle of the food system with a full accounting of the effects of food loss/waste.

Production of probiotic-fortified composite poultry feed from food and agricultural waste material

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the study was to ascertain the feasibility of fortifying composite poultry feed from food and agricultural waste material with the probiotic organism Lactobacillus fermentum and determine the efficiency of formulated probiotic-fortified feed via animal feeding tests.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Probiotic-fortified feed (G3) was formulated using proximate analysis values of waste materials. Alternative diets were G1-Feed Mill of Nigeria starter mash and G2-Ground corn. For growth comparison test, 30 1-day-old Agricol broiler chicks were randomized into three groups of 10 chicks each with each group being placed on a separate diet (G1, G2, and G3). Probiotics antimicrobial efficacy feeding assay consisted of the treatment diets T1-Feed Mill of Nigeria starter mash and T2-probiotic-fortified feed. Twenty 1-day-old unvaccinated chicks were placed into two groups of 10 chicks each and fed 0.5 ml of 9.0 × 108 CFU/ml Escherichia coli 0157:H7 on day 1 after which they were placed on treatment diets. Data collected were analyzed and interpreted using the SPSS Statistical tool version 25.

RESULTS

Chicks fed G1 and G3 diets performed similarly (p < 0.05) in terms of measured parameters (weight, height, and wingspan) and had better performance compared to chicks on G2. In the E. coli treatment group, chicks placed on treatment diets T1 and T2 showed similar levels of E. coli cell reduction every week. Performance based on measured parameters was also similar (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Feasibility of fortifying composite animal feed with the probiotic organism L. fermentum was ascertained and the efficiency of the feed via animal feeding tests was proven.

Understanding and addressing waste of food in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

INTRODUCTION

Multiple estimates suggest the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) may have one of the highest rates of wasted food globally. The KSA has limited arable lands and scarce water and thus relies on extensive imports and food subsidies to meet food demand. Accordingly, waste and loss of food are a significant concern for food security.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A narrative literature review was performed to identify the available information relevant to characterizing the context, magnitude of food wasted in the KSA, key contributing factors, and existing interventions and recommendations.

RESULTS

Estimates of annual per capita waste of food ranged from 165 kg to 511 kg. Given the country's relatively limited agricultural production, the consumer and retail levels are primary targets for intervention. Key contributors to waste include culture, food valuation, policy and industry factors, and awareness and concern. The country is at an early stage of developing responses. We build upon existing approaches and recommendations, with particular emphasis on the potential role of agricultural extension staff in addressing the issue, and highlight research needs.

CONCLUSIONS

Given the potentially exceptional levels of wasted food in the KSA and the extensive evidence gaps, there is a great need for further research and action. Our review and synthesis presents numerous opportunities to advance innovative waste reduction approaches in the country, with particular relevance for other parts of the Middle East and other areas early in their efforts to address waste of food.

Review on Indian Municipal Solid Waste Management practices for reduction of environmental impacts to achieve sustainable development goals

Open dumping is a common practice for MSW disposal in most of the Indian cities, apart from the metro-cities. This practice poses significant environmental and health risks due to toxic and greenhouse gases (GHGs) emission through direct combustion and/or decay of wastes. Therefore, integrated solid waste management (ISWM) using different methods viz., incineration, composting, anaerobic digestions, refuse derived fuel, material recovery facility and sanitary landfilling, is much needed. Accordingly, three waste management case scenarios were studied for year 2001-2051 by keeping weightage of sustainable development goals 2030 of India. Case I depicts Indian present scenario of waste management where 164-735 tonnes/year of wastes would be generated for year 2001-2051. Further, 60% of waste can be treated in case II that help in reducing the land requirement up to 40% from estimated conditions of 2031 i.e., 83.8 × 10⁷ m³. The case III is most ideal waste management condition for year 2031 to reduce 80% waste hence landfill requirement would minimize up to 16.76 × 10⁷ m³ where population is at controlled conditions. This article concludes the formal handling and treatment of ISWM would minimize the landfilling, where LCA can be an antidote to achieve sustainable development goals.