A Tool for the Selection of Food Waste Management Approaches for the Hospitality and Food Service Sector in the UK

The UK government has been calling for action in tackling food waste (FW) generation, to which the Hospitality and Food Services (HaFS) sector contributes substantially. Decision-making tools that inform the selection of appropriate FW management (FWM) processes in the HaFS sector are lacking. This study fills this gap by offering a conceptual decision-making tool that supports selecting appropriate and commercially available FW processing techniques for the HaFS sector. The study initially conducted an exploratory analysis of on-site and off-site FWM options commercially available in the UK to inform the development of a two-tier decision-making framework. A set of steering criteria was developed and refined via stakeholder consultations to create flowcharts that guide the selection of FWM options, i.e., Tier 1 of the framework. Tier 2 refines the FWM process selection using a comparative sustainability scorecard of FWM options performance developed through a rapid systematic evidence mapping. The main outcome of this study is a flexible decision-making tool that allows stakeholders to participate in the decision-making process and facilitate the selection of tailored-based FWM processes that better suit their circumstances and needs. This approach to decision-making is more likely to enable solutions that facilitate the sustainable management of wasted resources and promote circularity

Development of an integrated sustainability matrix to depict challenges and trade-offs of introducing bio-based plastics in the food packaging value chain

© 2020 As global plastic pollution is gaining increased attention, the use of bio-based plastics, especially in the food packaging sector, is growing in popularity. While this move is regarded as a solution to plastic pollution, it may shift or create detrimental impacts elsewhere in the production, consumption, management system, a possibility that is underexplored. The aim of the present study is to identify the potential challenges and trade-offs associated with the introduction of bio-based plastics in the food packaging industry, and highlight issues relevant to policy and decision-making processes. We employ a whole system approach to review the literature and assess holistically the performance of bio-based plastics, which looks at the entire lifecycle of bio-based plastic packaging (i.e. production, consumption, management) and considers wider aspects in the environmental, economic, social and technical sustainability domains. Based on our findings, we developed, and present herein, a sustainability decision matrix, a novel guiding tool, which can provide important insights into the potential impacts of the introduction of larger amount of bio-based plastic food packaging in the future and support decision-making processes. In conclusion, our preliminary high-level assessment of the bio-based plastics production, use and management system clearly reveals a number of blind-spots across the entire system that are currently ignored by the use of single-dimensional approaches. This highlights that the sustainability assessment of specific bio-based polymers requires thorough and further research that takes into account the type of feedstock, infrastructure availability, and interactions between sustainability domains, to ensure that the substitution of petrochemical-based plastics with bio-based alternatives in food packaging sector will not lead to unintended consequences

Unpacking the complexity of the polyethylene food contact articles value chain: A chemicals perspective

Polyethylene (PE) is the most widely used type of plastic food packaging, in which chemicals can potentially migrate into packaged foods. The implications of using and recycling PE from a chemical perspective remain underexplored. This study is a systematic evidence map of 116 studies looking at the migration of food contact chemicals (FCCs) across the lifecycle of PE food packaging. It identified a total of 377 FCCs, of which 211 were detected to migrate from PE articles into food or food simulants at least once. These 211 FCCs were checked against the inventory FCCs databases and EU regulatory lists. Only 25% of the detected FCCs are authorized by EU regulation for the manufacture of food contact materials. Furthermore, a quarter of authorized FCCs exceeded the specific migration limit (SML) at least once, while one-third (53) of non-authorised FCCs exceeded the threshold value of 10 μg/kg. Overall, evidence on FCCs migration across the PE food packaging lifecycle is incomplete, especially at the reprocessing stage. Considering the EU's commitment to increase packaging recycling, a better understanding and monitoring of PE food packaging quality from a chemical perspective across the entire lifecycle will enable the transition towards a sustainable plastics value chain

Unpacking the complexity of the polyethylene food contact articles value chain: A chemicals perspective

Polyethylene (PE) is the most widely used type of plastic food packaging, in which chemicals can potentially migrate into packaged foods. The implications of using and recycling PE from a chemical perspective remain underexplored. This study is a systematic evidence map of 116 studies looking at the migration of food contact chemicals (FCCs) across the lifecycle of PE food packaging. It identified a total of 377 FCCs, of which 211 were detected to migrate from PE articles into food or food simulants at least once. These 211 FCCs were checked against the inventory FCCs databases and EU regulatory lists. Only 25% of the detected FCCs are authorized by EU regulation for the manufacture of food contact materials. Furthermore, a quarter of authorized FCCs exceeded the specific migration limit (SML) at least once, while one-third (53) of non-authorised FCCs exceeded the threshold value of 10 μg/kg. Overall, evidence on FCCs migration across the PE food packaging lifecycle is incomplete, especially at the reprocessing stage. Considering the EU’s commitment to increase packaging recycling, a better understanding and monitoring of PE food packaging quality from a chemical perspective across the entire lifecycle will enable the transition towards a sustainable plastics value chain.The authors would like to express their gratitude to the Food Packaging Forum (FPF) for their support in compiling this systematic evidence map. This study was funded by Brunel University London as part of the Brunel Research Initiative & Enterprise Fund (BRIEF) award No. 11683100 , in the context of the ' Closing the Plastic Food Packaging Loop ' project.Scopu

Healthcare Waste Generation Worldwide and Its Dependence on Socio-Economic and Environmental Factors

This paper examines the dependence of the healthcare waste (HCW) generation rate on several social-economic and environmental parameters. Correlations were calculated between the quantities of healthcare waste generated (expressed in kg/bed/day) versus economic indices (GDP, healthcare expenditure per capita), social indices (HDI, IHDI, MPI, life expectancy, mean years of schooling, HIV prevalence, deaths due to tuberculosis and malaria, and under five mortality rate), and an environmental sustainability index (total CO2 emissions) from 42 countries worldwide. The statistical analysis included the examination of the normality of the data and the formation of linear multiple regression models to further investigate the correlation between those indices and HCW generation rates. Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficients were also calculated for all pairwise comparisons. Results showed that the life expectancy, the HDI, the mean years of schooling and the CO2 emissions positively affect the HCW generation rates and can be used as statistical predictors of those rates. The resulting best reduced regression model included the life expectancy and the CO2 emissions and explained 85% of the variability of the response

An overview of the occurrence, fate, and human risks of the bisphenol-A present in plastic materials, components, and products.

With over 95% of bisphenol-A (BPA) used in the production of polycarbonate (PC) and epoxy resins, termed here as BPA-based plastic materials, components, and products (MCPs), an investigation of human exposure to BPA over the whole lifecycle of BPA-based plastic MCPs is necessary. This mini-review unpacks the implications arising from the long-term human exposure to BPA and its potential accumulation across the lifecycle of BPA-based plastics (production, use, and management). This investigation is timely and necessary in promoting a sustainable circular economy model. Restrictions of BPA in the form of bans and safety standards are often specific to products, while safety limits rely on traditional toxicological and biomonitoring methods that may underestimate human health implications and therefore the "safety" of BPA exposure. Controversies in regards to the: (a) dose-response curves; (b) the complexity of sources, release mechanisms, and pathways of exposure; and/or (c) the quality and reliability of toxicological studies, appear to currently stifle progress toward the regulation of BPA-based plastic MCPs. Due to the abundance of BPA in our MCPs production, consumption, and management systems, there is partial and inadequate evidence on the contribution of BPA-based plastic MCPs to human exposure to BPA. Yet, the production, use, and end-of-life management of plastic MCPs constitute the most critical BPA source and potential exposure pathways that require further investigation. Active collaboration among risk assessors, government, policy-makers, and researchers is needed to explore the impacts of BPA in the long term and introduce restrictions to BPA-based MCPs. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022;00:1-18. © SETAC

Plastic waste in a circular economy

Plastic is a commodity that supports our modern lifestyles. Its remarkable range of properties (e.g., durability, lightweight, good barrier properties) combined with the ease of processing make plastic a sustainable alternative over other materials (e.g., glass, metals, and paper), of which production, use, and management can be more resource intensive. Owing to these attributes, plastics are considered to have an important role to play in promoting sustainability as part of a circular economy (CE). CE is a concept that seeks to promote a sustainable way of living, where resources are used more efficiently and are retained in the economy for as long as possible. The latter can be achieved by creating loops that feed resources back into the system for use in same or new components and products with the same or lower functionality. Paradoxically, plastics present also one of the biggest challenges to achieving a CE. This is because, in spite of their great potential to promote resource efficiency upstream, i.e., at the production stage, a vast amount of the plastic that becomes waste escapes into the environment and/or is largely mismanaged at the consumption and management stage. This highlights the urgent need for scrutiny in the way plastics are designed, produced, used, and managed, to better understand how to improve their ability to circulate back into the system, recovering maximum value from them. In this chapter, we present a framework for plastic waste management placing emphasis on their circularity potential via existing processes. Given the rapid emergence of bioplastics in the plastic industry, it would be an omission not to discuss their opportunities and implications in promoting circularity. Consideration of all aspects in the plastic and plastic waste system and of the processes that go beyond end-of-pipe solutions highlights that sustainable management necessitates a combination of an integrated solid waste management strategy with a renewed focus on designing out plastic waste.Scopu

A conceptual decision-making framework for the selection of food waste management approaches for the hospitality and food service sector in the UK

The UK government has been calling for action in tackling food waste (FW) generation, to which the Hospitality and Food Services (HaFS) sector contributes substantially. Decision-making tools that inform the selection of appropriate FW management (FWM) processes in the HaFS sector are lacking. This study fills this gap by offering a conceptual decision-making tool that supports se-lecting appropriate and commercially available FW processing techniques for the HaFS sector. The study initially conducted an exploratory analysis of commercially available on-site and off-site FWM options in the UK to inform the decision-making framework. A set of steering criteria was developed and refined via stakeholder consultations to create flowcharts that guide the selection of FWM options, i.e., Tier 1 of the framework. Tier 2 refines the FWM process selection using a comparative sustainability performance of FWM options, developed through a rapid systematic evidence mapping. The study offers a flexible decision-making tool that allows stakeholders to contribute to the decision-making process and facilitate the selection of tailored-based FWM processes that better suit their circumstances and needs. This approach to decision-making is more likely to enable solutions that facilitate the sustainable management of wasted resources and promote circularity

Systematic evidence mapping to assess the sustainability of bioplastics derived from food waste : do we know enough?

The production of bioplastics from food loss and waste (FLW), termed FLW-derived bioplastics, is considered an attractive alternative to first-generation bioplastics. To our knowledge, a clear understanding of the sustainability performance of FLW-derived bioplastics from environmental, economic, technical, and social aspects is still lacking. This systematic evidence mapping aims to fill this gap by undertaking a reality check on the life cycle sustainability performance of FLW-derived bioplastics from a multidimensional perspective underpinned by systems thinking approach to assess their potential to revolutionise the plastics economy. Results revealed that FLW-derived bioplastic production is highly complex and uncertain. The low technological readiness of FLW valorisation processes and the under-researched logistics of FLW management on a regional scale currently withhold advancement in this field. Nonetheless, progress is looming, and ensuring that FLW-derived bioplastics production enables the transition toward a sustainable bioeconomy is critical. Innovation in both the food and plastics value chains is urgently needed to address their challenges and mitigate pollution. Yet, any steps forward need to be holistically calculated to yield sustainability benefits and prevent unintended consequences