Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 May 6:1-22.
doi: 10.1007/s10668-023-03300-2. Online ahead of print.

Toward food waste reduction at universities

Walter Leal Filho  1   2 , Priscilla Cristina Cabral Ribeiro  3 , Andréia Faraoni Freitas Setti  4 , Fardous Mohammad Safiul Azam  5 , Ismaila Rimi Abubakar  6 , Julen Castillo-Apraiz  7 , Unai Tamayo  7 , Pinar Gokcin Özuyar  8 , Kamila Frizzo  9 , Bruno Borsari  10
Affiliations

Toward food waste reduction at universities

Walter Leal Filho et al. Environ Dev Sustain. .

Abstract

Food waste is a serious problem, which undermines the achievement of many sustainable development goals (SDGs), despite their consideration in the agendas of many countries and companies. Notoriously, food waste (FW) causes different kinds of pollution that affect public health and social justice, while contributing to economic losses. This waste phenomenon has causes, drivers, and impacts that require rigorous assessments and effective approaches to mitigate its noxious effects, which are a serious concern for universities. Within these institutions, reducing food waste becomes a circular economy strategy, which is being utilized to assist in promoting sustainable development. However, there is a need for urgent attention to the specific causes of food waste and for consistent actions to reduce it, while boosting awareness in the campus community and triggering a change in students' eating habits. The purpose of this study is to analyze what can be done to reduce the levels of food waste at universities. To achieve this, a review of the theme's state of the art, which is inclusive of an overview of food waste production at universities around the world, is presented. The study employed a qualitative methodology where a comprehensive review of the literature and case studies analyses from selected world regions were considered. The data indicate that a broad variance exists in producing food waste among universities, from 0.12 to 50 kg/capita/day. More factors influence the problem (e.g., gender, age, season, consumer behavior), as well as strategies to solve and prevent it (e.g., composting, recycling, new designs of packages, trayless meals, education), and benefits leading toward food waste reductions from 13 to 50%. Also, four priority actions were identified to reduce food waste at universities, and these consist of planning and awareness, food preparation and storage, services, and direct waste reuse. With appropriate adaptations, these recommended actions should be deployed as means for reducing food waste at universities around the world, while expanding learning and education in sustainability.

Keywords: Food consumption; Food waste; Preventive actions; Sustainable development; Universities.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interestThe authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Key dimensions of the FW problem
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Schematic view of the study approach used
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Abdelaal AH, McKay G, Mackey, & H. R. Food waste from a university campus in the Middle East: Drivers, composition, and resource recovery potential. Waste Management. 2019;98:14–20. doi: 10.1016/j.wasman.2019.08.007. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Adeniyi LA, Afon AO. Seasonal quantification and characterization of solid waste generation in a tertiary institution: A case study. Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management. 2022;24(3):1172–1181. doi: 10.1007/s10163-022-01390-0. - DOI
    1. Al-Aomar R, Haroun A, Osman A. A comprehensive approach to the feasibility assessment of on-campus food waste composting. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management. 2022;18(4):964–977. doi: 10.1002/ieam.4529. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Borsari B. Curriculum framework for sustainability education. Academic Exchange Quarterly. 2012;16(1):74–78.
    1. Borsari B. Soil quality and regenerative, sustainable farming systems. In: Leal FW, Azul A, Brandli L, Özuyar P, Wall T, editors. Zero hunger. Encyclopedia of the UN sustainable development goals. 1. Springer; 2020. pp. 823–832.

LinkOut - more resources