IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/recore/v87y2014icp57-64.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Environmental sustainability assessment of food waste valorization options

Author

Listed:
  • Vandermeersch, T.
  • Alvarenga, R.A.F.
  • Ragaert, P.
  • Dewulf, J.

Abstract

Food waste can be valorized through different technologies, such as anaerobic digestion, incineration, and animal feed production. In this study we analyzed the environmental performance of two food waste valorization scenarios from a company of the retail sector in Belgium, through exergy analysis, exergetic life cycle assessment (ELCA), and a traditional life cycle assessment (LCA). In scenario 1 all food waste was considered to be valorized in an anaerobic digestion (producing electricity, heat, digestate and sorting the packaging material to be used as fuel for cement industry), while in scenario 2 a bread fraction was valorized to produce animal feed and a non-bread fraction was valorized in an anaerobic digestion (producing the same products on scenario 1, but in lower amounts). Scenario 2 was 10% more efficient than scenario 1 in the exergy analysis. For the ELCA and the single score LCA, scenario 2 presented lower environmental impacts than scenario 1 (32% and 26% lower, respectively). These results were mainly due to the avoided products from traditional supply chain (animal feed produced from agricultural products) and lower exergy loss at the feed production plant. Nevertheless, the high dry matter content of the bread waste played an important role on these results, therefore it should be pointed out that valorizing food waste to animal feed seems to be a better option only for the fractions of food waste with low water content (as bread waste).

Suggested Citation

  • Vandermeersch, T. & Alvarenga, R.A.F. & Ragaert, P. & Dewulf, J., 2014. "Environmental sustainability assessment of food waste valorization options," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 57-64.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:recore:v:87:y:2014:i:c:p:57-64
    DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2014.03.008
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344914000664
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.resconrec.2014.03.008?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mena, Carlos & Adenso-Diaz, B. & Yurt, Oznur, 2011. "The causes of food waste in the supplier–retailer interface: Evidences from the UK and Spain," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 55(6), pages 648-658.
    2. Cherubini, Francesco & Bargigli, Silvia & Ulgiati, Sergio, 2009. "Life cycle assessment (LCA) of waste management strategies: Landfilling, sorting plant and incineration," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 34(12), pages 2116-2123.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ludovica Principato & Alessio Leo & Giovanni Mattia & Carlo Alberto Pratesi, 2021. "The next step in sustainable dining: the restaurant food waste map for the management of food waste," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 2021(3), pages 189-207, September.
    2. Eriksson, Mattias & Ghosh, Ranjan & Mattsson, Lisa & Ismatov, Alisher, 2017. "Take-back agreements in the perspective of food waste generation at the supplier-retailer interface," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 83-93.
    3. Jones, R.E. & Speight, R.E. & Blinco, J.L. & O'Hara, I.M., 2022. "Biorefining within food loss and waste frameworks: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    4. Ludovica Principato & Stefano Marchetti & Marco Barbanera & Luca Ruini & Leonardo Capoccia & Camilla Comis & Luca Secondi, 2023. "Introducing digital tools for sustainable food supply management: Tackling food loss and waste in industrial canteens," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 27(4), pages 1060-1075, August.
    5. Soltanian, Salman & Kalogirou, Soteris A. & Ranjbari, Meisam & Amiri, Hamid & Mahian, Omid & Khoshnevisan, Benyamin & Jafary, Tahereh & Nizami, Abdul-Sattar & Gupta, Vijai Kumar & Aghaei, Siavash & Pe, 2022. "Exergetic sustainability analysis of municipal solid waste treatment systems: A systematic critical review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    6. Daniel Hoehn & María Margallo & Jara Laso & Ana Fernández-Ríos & Israel Ruiz-Salmón & Rubén Aldaco, 2022. "Energy Systems in the Food Supply Chain and in the Food Loss and Waste Valorization Processes: A Systematic Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-15, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sevigné Itoiz, E. & Gasol, C.M & Farreny, R. & Rieradevall, J. & Gabarrell, X., 2013. "CO2ZW: Carbon footprint tool for municipal solid waste management for policy options in Europe. Inventory of Mediterranean countries," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 623-632.
    2. Shi, Yi & Deng, Yawen & Wang, Guoan & Xu, Jiuping, 2020. "Stackelberg equilibrium-based eco-economic approach for sustainable development of kitchen waste disposal with subsidy policy: A case study from China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    3. Jacopo Zotti & Andrea Bigano, 2019. "Write circular economy, read economy’s circularity. How to avoid going in circles," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 36(2), pages 629-652, July.
    4. Nabavi-Pelesaraei, Ashkan & Azadi, Hossein & Van Passel, Steven & Saber, Zahra & Hosseini-Fashami, Fatemeh & Mostashari-Rad, Fatemeh & Ghasemi-Mobtaker, Hassan, 2021. "Prospects of solar systems in production chain of sunflower oil using cold press method with concentrating energy and life cycle assessment," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 223(C).
    5. Pöschl, Martina & Ward, Shane & Owende, Philip, 2010. "Evaluation of energy efficiency of various biogas production and utilization pathways," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 87(11), pages 3305-3321, November.
    6. Sofia Dahlgren & Jonas Ammenberg, 2021. "Sustainability Assessment of Public Transport, Part II—Applying a Multi-Criteria Assessment Method to Compare Different Bus Technologies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-30, January.
    7. Hatem Abushammala & Muhammad Adil Masood & Salma Taqi Ghulam & Jia Mao, 2023. "On the Conversion of Paper Waste and Rejects into High-Value Materials and Energy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-21, April.
    8. G. Perkoulidis & A. Malamakis & G. Banias & N. Moussiopoulos, 2022. "Development of a Methodological Framework for the Evaluation of the Material and Energy Recovery Potential of Municipal Solid Waste Management: Implementation in Five Greek Regions," Circular Economy and Sustainability, Springer, vol. 2(1), pages 313-326, March.
    9. Agostinho, Feni & Almeida, Cecília M.V.B. & Bonilla, Silvia H. & Sacomano, José B. & Giannetti, Biagio F., 2013. "Urban solid waste plant treatment in Brazil: Is there a net emergy yield on the recovered materials?," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 143-155.
    10. Akbulut, Abdullah, 2012. "Techno-economic analysis of electricity and heat generation from farm-scale biogas plant: Çiçekdağı case study," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 44(1), pages 381-390.
    11. Hsu, C.-H. & Wang, Fu-Kwun & Tzeng, Gwo-Hshiung, 2012. "The best vendor selection for conducting the recycled material based on a hybrid MCDM model combining DANP with VIKOR," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 95-111.
    12. Jamie E. Filer & Justin D. Delorit & Andrew J. Hoisington & Steven J. Schuldt, 2020. "Optimizing the Environmental and Economic Sustainability of Remote Community Infrastructure," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-15, March.
    13. EiÄ aitÄ—, Ovidija & Baležentis, Tomas & RibaÅ¡auskienÄ—, Erika & MorkÅ«nas, Mangirdas & MelnikienÄ—, Rasa & Å treimikienÄ—, Dalia, 2022. "Food waste in the retail sector: A survey-based evidence from Central and Eastern Europe," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    14. Liu, Gengyuan & Yang, Zhifeng & Chen, Bin & Zhang, Lixiao, 2013. "Modelling a thermodynamic-based comparative framework for urban sustainability: Incorporating economic and ecological losses into emergy analysis," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 252(C), pages 280-287.
    15. Fazeli, Alireza & Bakhtvar, Farzaneh & Jahanshaloo, Leila & Che Sidik, Nor Azwadi & Bayat, Ali Esfandyari, 2016. "Malaysia׳s stand on municipal solid waste conversion to energy: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 1007-1016.
    16. Thyberg, Krista L. & Tonjes, David J., 2016. "Drivers of food waste and their implications for sustainable policy development," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 110-123.
    17. Grima-Olmedo, C. & Ramírez-Gómez, Á. & Alcalde-Cartagena, R., 2014. "Energetic performance of landfill and digester biogas in a domestic cooker," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 301-308.
    18. Emanuele Bonamente & Lara Pelliccia & Maria Cleofe Merico & Sara Rinaldi & Alessandro Petrozzi, 2015. "The Multifunctional Environmental Energy Tower: Carbon Footprint and Land Use Analysis of an Integrated Renewable Energy Plant," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(10), pages 1-21, October.
    19. Marco Abis & Martina Bruno & Kerstin Kuchta & Franz-Georg Simon & Raul Grönholm & Michel Hoppe & Silvia Fiore, 2020. "Assessment of the Synergy between Recycling and Thermal Treatments in Municipal Solid Waste Management in Europe," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-15, December.
    20. Di Maria, Francesco & Micale, Caterina & Contini, Stefano, 2016. "Energetic and environmental sustainability of the co-digestion of sludge with bio-waste in a life cycle perspective," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 171(C), pages 67-76.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:recore:v:87:y:2014:i:c:p:57-64. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Kai Meng (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/resources-conservation-and-recycling .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.