Life-cycle assessment on food waste valorisation to value-added products

The environmental impacts of five waste management scenarios for polylactic acid (PLA)-based bioplastics and food waste were quantified using life cycle assessment. Laboratory experiments have demonstrated the potential for a pretreatment process to accelerate the degradation of bioplastics and were modeled in two of the five scenarios assessed. The five scenarios analyzed in this study were: (1a) Anaerobic digestion (1b) Anaerobic digestion with pretreatment; (2a) Compost; (2a) Compost with pretreatment; (3) Landfill. Results suggested that food waste and pretreated bioplastics disposed of with an anaerobic digester offers life cycle and environmental net total benefits (environmental advantages/offsets) in several areas: ecotoxicity (−81.38 CTUe), eutrophication (0 kg N eq), cumulative energy demand (−1.79 MJ), global warming potential (0.19 kg CO2), and human health non-carcinogenic (−2.52 CTuh). Normalized results across all impact categories show that anaerobically digesting food waste and bioplastics offer the most offsets for ecotoxicity, eutrophication, cumulative energy demand and non-carcinogenic. Implications from this study can lead to nutrient and energy recovery from an anaerobic digester that can diversify the types of fertilizers and decrease landfill waste while decreasing dependency on non-renewable technologies. Thus, using anaerobic digestion to manage bioplastics and food waste should be further explored as a viable and sustainable solution for waste management.

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Life cycle assessment of food waste composting management

10.1063/5.0072624 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

R. Abu ◽

M. A. A. Aziz ◽

C. H. C. Hassan ◽

Z. Z. Noor ◽

T. A. T. Abdullah

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle Assessment ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Food Waste

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Food Waste Management and Value-added Products

Journal of Food Science ◽

10.1111/j.1365-2621.2004.tb13340.x ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 69 (3) ◽

pp. CRH102-CRH104 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

GARY S. TUCKER

Keyword(s):

Waste Management ◽

Food Waste ◽

Value Added ◽

Value Added Products

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

Waste Management & Research ◽

10.1177/0734242x211050181 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 39 (10) ◽

pp. 1317-1327

Author(s):

Giovanni Dolci ◽

Lucia Rigamonti ◽

Mario Grosso

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle Assessment ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Waste Management ◽

Food Waste ◽

Primary Data ◽

Environmental Product Declaration ◽

Product Environmental Footprint ◽

Weight Losses ◽

Alternative Systems ◽

Two Systems

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.

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Value-Added Products From Food Waste

Research Anthology on Food Waste Reduction and Alternative Diets for Food and Nutrition Security ◽

10.4018/978-1-7998-5354-1.ch030 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 595-603

Author(s):

Baban Baburao Gunjal

Keyword(s):

Essential Oils ◽

Single Cell ◽

Bioactive Compounds ◽

Food Waste ◽

Inorganic Compounds ◽

Value Added ◽

Dietary Fibers ◽

Biodegradable Waste ◽

Livestock Feed ◽

Value Added Products

Food waste is the most challenging issue humankind is facing worldwide. Food waste, which consists of carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and inorganic compounds, is a biodegradable waste discharged from food processing industries, households, and hospitality sectors. The management of food waste is very important. The food waste generated is usually incinerated or dumped in open areas which may cause severe health and environmental issues. The management of food waste can be done by conversion to different value-added products, for example, phytochemicals, bioactive compounds, food supplements, livestock feed, dietary fibers, biopigments and colorants, emulsifiers, edible and essential oils, biopreservatives, biofertilizers, biofuels, and single cell proteins. The value-added products from food waste will be very eco-friendly. The chapter will focus on different value-added products from food waste.

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Value Added Products from Agriculture, Paper and Food Waste: A Source of Bioenergy Production

10.1007/978-981-16-1190-2_3 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 91-126

Author(s):

M. Subhosh Chandra ◽

M. Srinivasulu ◽

P. Suresh Yadav ◽

B. Ramesh ◽

G. Narasimha ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Food Waste ◽

Value Added ◽

Bioenergy Production ◽

Value Added Products

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Validation of Sustainability Benchmarking Tool in the Context of Value-Added Wood Products Manufacturing Activities

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11082361 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. 2361 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Cagatay Tasdemir ◽

Rado Gazo

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle Assessment ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Six Sigma ◽

Value Added ◽

Primary Objective ◽

Lean Six Sigma ◽

Wood Products ◽

Bottom Line ◽

Sustainability Performance ◽

Base Points

The primary objective of this study was to validate the sustainability benchmarking tool (SBT) framework proposed by the authors in a previous study. The SBT framework is focused on benchmarking triple bottom line (TBL) sustainability through exhaustive use of lean, six-sigma, and life cycle assessment (LCA). During the validation, sustainability performance of a value-added wood products’ production line was assessed and improved through deployment of the SBT framework. Strengths and weaknesses of the system were identified within the scope of the bronze frontier maturity level of the framework and tackled through a six-step analytical and quantitative reasoning methodology. The secondary objective of the study was to document how value-added wood products industries can take advantage of natural properties of wood to become frontiers of sustainability innovation. In the end, true sustainability performance of the target facility was improved by 2.37 base points, while economic and environmental performance was increased from being a system weakness to achieving an acceptable index score benchmark of 8.41 and system strength level of 9.31, respectively. The social sustainability score increased by 2.02 base points as a function of a better gender bias ratio. The financial performance of the system improved from a 33% loss to 46.23% profit in the post-improvement state. Reductions in CO2 emissions (55.16%), energy consumption (50.31%), solid waste generation (72.03%), non-value-added-time (89.30%), and cost performance (64.77%) were other significant achievements of the study. In the end, the SBT framework was successfully validated at the facility level, and the target facility evolved into a leaner, cleaner, and more responsible version of itself. This study empirically documents how synergies between lean, sustainability, six-sigma and life cycle assessment concepts outweigh their divergences and demonstrates the viability of the SBT framework.

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