scholarly journals Benefits and Limitations of Methods of Measuring Food Losses and Their Economic and Non-Economic Significance – The Case of Bakery and Confectionery Industry

2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 20-28
Author(s):  
Elżbieta Goryńska-Goldmann ◽  
Michał Gazdecki ◽  
Krystyna Rejman
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Survey Methods ◽  
Legal Aspects ◽  
Balance Method ◽  
Important Place ◽  
Mass Balance Method ◽  
Economic Significance ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Confectionery Products ◽  
Food Losses

Abstract The urgent challenge of reaching sustainable development goals (including those pertaining to the limitation of food losses and waste) raises social awareness in this area. At the same time, a need arose to conduct studies focusing on the creation of a system of gathering and reporting data on food wastage and procedures helping to reduce its scale. The article presents and discusses the benefits and drawbacks of selected methods of data collection used for estimating of food losses in processing sectors, based on a case of the bakery and confectionery industry (the mass balance method, quantitative studies – questionnaire/survey methods, qualitative research – in-depth interviews, direct measurement). Attention was paid to the importance of methodological, technical, organisational and legal aspects. The starting points were the methods for certain links in the food chain identified in EU legal documents of 2019. Bakery and confectionery businesses make up around 40% of the number of entities operating in the agri-food sector in Poland, holding an important place in the food economy. The sector's losses are around 2.5% of the mass of the manufactured products, with the highest losses attributable to production departments in bakeries. The complexity of manufacturing processes of a wide range of bakery and confectionery products raises numerous problems with regard to measuring losses, especially in the methodological, technical, organisational and legal aspects. The mass balance method should be considered the most recommended for measuring losses in the bakery and confectionery sector. Collected knowledge can be used on a practical level, to create reporting systems about food losses in our country for selected food sectors. Such actions will allow meeting the reporting requirements of the European Commission (EC) and to monitor process of food loss reduction.

Estimating local methane sources from drone-based laser spectrometer measurements by mass-balance method

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randulph P. Morales ◽  
Jonas Ravelid ◽  
Killian P. Brennan ◽  
Béla Tuzson ◽  
Lukas Emmenegger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Sonic Anemometer ◽  
Gas Production ◽  
Balance Method ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Variability ◽  
Emission Flux ◽  
Atmospheric Methane ◽  
Mass Balance Method ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Wide Range

<p>Methane from facility-scale sources (e.g. landfills and oil and gas production facilities) are prone to leakage giving rise to highly uncertain emission flux estimates. To assess the overall impact of these sources, quantification from a representative set of individual sources – from which bottom-up inventories are generated - is necessary. An attractive approach to quantify emissions from diffusive and leaky sources involves deploying an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) equipped with a methane sensor which allows complete mapping of the spatial and temporal variability of emission plumes within a short period of time.</p><p>Atmospheric methane concentrations were measured using a Quantum Cascade Laser Absorption Spectrometer (QCLAS) developed in-house. The spectrometer reaches in-flight precision of a few ppb at 1s time resolution, and its lightweight and compact footprint (~ 2.0 kg, ~ 15.0 x 45.0 x 25.0 cm) allows it to be mounted and flown on a commercial drone.</p><p>We quantify methane emission fluxes from local sources by applying the mass balance method using the drone-based QCLAS system. The drone was flown downwind of a given source perpendicular to the main wind direction at different altitudes above ground, while geostatistical interpolation (Kriging) of the measured methane molar fractions was performed to spatially fill the gaps. The interpolated concentrations were multiplied by the cross-sectional area and the mean stream-wise wind profile obtained from a 3D sonic anemometer to get an emission flux.</p><p>We report on the analysis of how well known emissions can be reproduced using this quantification setup based on controlled release experiments. Furthermore, we discuss the sensitivity of different measurement configurations, and provide recommendations for an optimal sampling and quantification strategy. We demonstrate the suitability and flexibility of the quantification method in investigating a wide range of facility-scale sources, which are not attainable with measurements from conventional ground-based sensors.</p>

Carbon and nitrogen budgets of a winter rapeseed field in Estonia: a methodology for the quantification of all relevant pools and fluxes

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordi Escuer-Gatius ◽  
Krista Lõhmus ◽  
Merrit Shanskiy ◽  
Karin Kauer ◽  
Hanna Vahter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Environmental Parameters ◽  
Balance Method ◽  
Nitrogen Budgets ◽  
N Cycle ◽  
Carbon And Nitrogen ◽  
Mass Balance Method ◽  
C Cycle ◽  
Winter Rapeseed ◽  
C And N

<p>Agricultural activities can have several adverse impacts on the environment; such as important greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. To implement effective mitigation measures and create effective policies, it is necessary to know the full carbon and nitrogen budgets of agro-ecosystems. However, very often, information regarding the pools or fluxes involved in the carbon and nitrogen cycles is limited, and essential complementary data needed for a proper interpretation is lacking.</p><p>This study aimed to quantify all the relevant pools and fluxes of a winter rapeseed, a widely spread crop in the Europe and Baltic regions. The N<sub>2</sub>O and CH<sub>4</sub> fluxes were measured weekly using the closed static chamber method from August 2016 to August 2017 in a winter rapeseed field in Central Estonia. Additionally, nutrient leaching and soil chemical parameters, as well as environmental parameters like soil moisture, electrical conductivity and temperature were monitored. At the end of the season, the rapeseed and weed biomasses were collected, weighed and analyzed. The remaining relevant fluxes in the N cycle were calculated using various non-empirical methods: NH<sub>3</sub> volatilization was estimated from slurry and environmental parameters, N deposition and NO<sub>x</sub> emissions were obtained from national reports, and N<sub>2</sub> emissions were calculated with the mass balance method. Regarding the C cycle, gross primary production (GPP) of the rapeseed field was also calculated by the mass balance method. Simultaneously, for comparison and validation purposes, GPP was estimated from the data provided by MOD17A2H v006 series from NASA, and N<sub>2</sub> was estimated from the measured emissions of N<sub>2</sub>O using the N<sub>2</sub>:N<sub>2</sub>O ratio calculated from the DAYCENT model equations.</p><p>N<sub>2</sub> emissions and GPP were the biggest fluxes in the N and C cycles, respectively. N<sub>2</sub> emissions were followed by N extracted with plant biomass in the N cycle, while in the carbon cycle soil and plant respiration and NPP were the highest fluxes after GPP. The carbon balance was positive at the soil level, with a net increase in soil carbon during the period, mainly due to GPP carbon capture. Contrarily, the nitrogen balance resulted in a net loss of N due to the losses related to gaseous emissions (N<sub>2</sub> and N<sub>2</sub>O) and leaching.</p><p>To conclude, it was possible to close the C and N budgets, despite the inherent difficulties of estimating the different C and N environmental pools and fluxes, and the uncertainties deriving from some of the fluxes estimations.</p>

scholarly journals A simplified implementation of the stationary liquid mass balance method for on-line OUR monitoring in animal cell cultures

2018 ◽  
Vol 93 (6) ◽  
pp. 1757-1766 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreu Fontova ◽  
Martí Lecina ◽  
Jonatan López-Repullo ◽  
Iván Martínez-Monge ◽  
Pere Comas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Cell Cultures ◽  
Animal Cell ◽  
Balance Method ◽  
Mass Balance Method ◽  
Liquid Mass ◽  
Stationary Liquid ◽  
Animal Cell Cultures ◽  
On Line

Determination of the volatilization of ammonia from surface-applied cattle slurry by the micrometeorological mass balance method

1987 ◽  
Vol 109 (1) ◽  
pp. 205-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. Stevens ◽  
H. J. Logan
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Field Trials ◽  
Balance Method ◽  
Cattle Slurry ◽  
Ammonia Loss ◽  
Mass Balance Method ◽  
Direct Measurements ◽  
Balance Technique ◽  
Land Surfaces ◽  
Grass Growth

Agronomic experiments have shown that nitrogen applied in organic manures gives variable responses in grass growth (van Dijk & Sturm, 1983; Smith, Unwin & Williams, 1985). In a series of field trials in southern England, the average apparent recovery in herbage of the nitrogen from cow slurry was only 13% (Unwin, Pain & Whinham, 1986). The volatilization of ammonia from spread slurry is one possible mechanism for the nitrogen inefficiency (Freney, Simpson & Denmead, 1983; Ryden, 1984). Direct measurements of ammonia loss from land surfaces can be made by micrometeorological methods (Denmead, 1983) and, using the micrometeorological mass balance technique, high rates of ammonia loss were recorded after the land spreading of liquid dairy cattle manure in Canada (Beauchamp, Kidd & Thurtell, 1982). The micrometeorological mass balance method has been used in England to measure ammonia loss from a grazed sward (Ryden & McNeill, 1984). This paper presents the results of an experiment where the same method was used to measure the ammonia loss after land-spreading cattle slurry in Northern Ireland.

Leaf-litter accretion and decomposition in interior and coastal old-growth redwood stands

1993 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 552-557 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. Pillers ◽  
John D. Stuart
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Balance Method ◽  
Litter Fall ◽  
Old Growth ◽  
Litter Bag ◽  
Mass Balance Method ◽  
Balance Analysis ◽  
Average Relative Humidity ◽  
Mass Balance Analysis

Litter fall and litter decomposition were measured in old-growth coastal redwood (Sequoiasempervirens (D. Don) Endl.) forests. Hillside and bottomland areas at inland and coastal locations were selected as representative sites. Both litter-bag and insitu mass-balance analyses were used to determine decomposition rates. Average annual litter fall at the four sites ranged from 3120 to 4690 kg•ha−1•year−1. Decomposition rate constants (k) calculated from the mass-balance analysis ranged from 0.117 to 0.238 year−1. Values of k estimated from the litter-bag analysis ranged from 0.273 to 0.405 year−1. Equilibrium litter loads from mass-balance analysis ranged from 15 700 to 30 000 kg•ha−1. Equilibrium litter loads estimated from litter-bag analysis ranged from 7760 to 14 500 kg•ha−1. Litter-layer equilibrium was between 12 and 26 years using the mass-balance analysis and between 7 and 11 years with the litter-bag study. The mass-balance method for calculating decomposition constants showed that litter at coastal sites decomposed faster than at inland sites. There were no differences between upland and bottomland sites. The litter-bag method, in contrast, indicated that litter at inland sites decomposed faster than at coastal sites. Significant regressions of litter decomposition constants as functions of summer average relative humidity, temperature, vapor-pressure deficit, and litter moisture were found with the mass-balance method. There were no significant regressions of temperature and moisture variables with litter decomposition constants calculated with the litter-bag analysis.

Purity determination and uncertainty evaluation of folic acid by mass balance method

Talanta ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 101 ◽  
pp. 96-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Gong ◽  
Ting Huang ◽  
Yi Yang ◽  
Haifeng Wang
Keyword(s):  
Folic Acid ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Balance Method ◽  
Uncertainty Evaluation ◽  
Purity Determination ◽  
Mass Balance Method
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