consumption among humans. According to the United Nations report, meat production consumes high levels of natural resources and energy (Motavalli 2008;
Jurgilevich et al. 2016), in addition to producing greenhouse gases and other
pollutants in greater quantities than the transportation system (Motavalli 2008).
Moreover, Jurgilevich et al. (2016) specify that not only do consumers not have
access to information about the actors involved in the food production system, they
also are not aware of the ethical consequences of their food-related choices. Some of
these problems are related to different factors, like tradition and culture, and value
and belief systems.
The final stage of agri-food systems is that of food waste and surplus management. Food surplus is defined as extra but edible food (Papargyropoulou et al. 2014).
When this edible food becomes inedible or is lost, the result is waste food. In other
words, a waste of food is a waste of natural resources (e.g., water and land) and
agricultural input (e.g., the fertilizers, energy, and labor that are used in the different
stages of food systems, like processing, distribution, storage, and consumption)
(Halloran et al. 2014) and even packaging (Parfitt et al. 2010). “Packaging design
for sustainability” has been considered one of the important issues in the field of
sustainability (Duizer et al. 2009). Rezaei et al. (2019) argue that, to have a
sustainable packaging design, it is more important to take the criteria into account
that guarantee the sustainability of the entire supply chain than merely looking at
product- or company-specific sustainability criteria.
FAO (2011) reports that, in industrialized countries, much more food waste is
created on a per capita basis than in developing countries. Additionally, based on this
report, in high-income countries, waste occurs more at the consumption stage, while
in low-income countries, more waste is created in the primary stages of food
systems.
Some agricultural waste may be avoidable (can be prevented), while other waste
is unavoidable (cannot be prevented). Knowing these features can help improve the
strategy and plan in advance to prevent food waste, especially when it is avoidable,
or reuse/recycle unavoidable waste. In the AgroCycle project (AgroCycle 2017),
agricultural waste, co-products, and by-products (AWCB) are divided into avoidable
and unavoidable (see Table 4.1).
It is not only some direct actions, like a lack of coordination and knowledge being
shared among actors in the agri-food systems that cause food waste (FAO 2011), but
also the indirect actions of some of the actors in agri-food systems, for instance,
through packaging sizes, sale promotions, or discounts that affect the behavior of
consumers (Parfitt et al. 2010).
Figure 4.1 shows different types of waste that can be produced at different stages
of food systems in Denmark (Halloran et al. 2014), which we think to a large extent
applies to other parts of the world as well.
Based on Fig. 4.1, the producers of basic food products, from large-scale commercial producers to family farmers, are involved and active in the primary sector. At
this stage, the most significant loss of edible products takes place, including dead
animals and wasted seeds in the field. The major types of food waste in the food
processors stage are related to dairy products and meat, with only a minor share of
4 Circular Economy in Agri-food Systems
61
Jurgilevich et al. 2016), in addition to producing greenhouse gases and other
pollutants in greater quantities than the transportation system (Motavalli 2008).
Moreover, Jurgilevich et al. (2016) specify that not only do consumers not have
access to information about the actors involved in the food production system, they
also are not aware of the ethical consequences of their food-related choices. Some of
these problems are related to different factors, like tradition and culture, and value
and belief systems.
The final stage of agri-food systems is that of food waste and surplus management. Food surplus is defined as extra but edible food (Papargyropoulou et al. 2014).
When this edible food becomes inedible or is lost, the result is waste food. In other
words, a waste of food is a waste of natural resources (e.g., water and land) and
agricultural input (e.g., the fertilizers, energy, and labor that are used in the different
stages of food systems, like processing, distribution, storage, and consumption)
(Halloran et al. 2014) and even packaging (Parfitt et al. 2010). “Packaging design
for sustainability” has been considered one of the important issues in the field of
sustainability (Duizer et al. 2009). Rezaei et al. (2019) argue that, to have a
sustainable packaging design, it is more important to take the criteria into account
that guarantee the sustainability of the entire supply chain than merely looking at
product- or company-specific sustainability criteria.
FAO (2011) reports that, in industrialized countries, much more food waste is
created on a per capita basis than in developing countries. Additionally, based on this
report, in high-income countries, waste occurs more at the consumption stage, while
in low-income countries, more waste is created in the primary stages of food
systems.
Some agricultural waste may be avoidable (can be prevented), while other waste
is unavoidable (cannot be prevented). Knowing these features can help improve the
strategy and plan in advance to prevent food waste, especially when it is avoidable,
or reuse/recycle unavoidable waste. In the AgroCycle project (AgroCycle 2017),
agricultural waste, co-products, and by-products (AWCB) are divided into avoidable
and unavoidable (see Table 4.1).
It is not only some direct actions, like a lack of coordination and knowledge being
shared among actors in the agri-food systems that cause food waste (FAO 2011), but
also the indirect actions of some of the actors in agri-food systems, for instance,
through packaging sizes, sale promotions, or discounts that affect the behavior of
consumers (Parfitt et al. 2010).
Figure 4.1 shows different types of waste that can be produced at different stages
of food systems in Denmark (Halloran et al. 2014), which we think to a large extent
applies to other parts of the world as well.
Based on Fig. 4.1, the producers of basic food products, from large-scale commercial producers to family farmers, are involved and active in the primary sector. At
this stage, the most significant loss of edible products takes place, including dead
animals and wasted seeds in the field. The major types of food waste in the food
processors stage are related to dairy products and meat, with only a minor share of
4 Circular Economy in Agri-food Systems
61