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Challenges of Food Waste Governance: An Assessment of European Legislation on Food Waste and Recommendations for Improvement by Economic Instruments

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  • Beatrice Garske

    (Research Unit Sustainability and Climate Policy, 04229 Leipzig, Germany
    Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, University of Rostock, 18051 Rostock, Germany)

  • Katharine Heyl

    (Research Unit Sustainability and Climate Policy, 04229 Leipzig, Germany)

  • Felix Ekardt

    (Research Unit Sustainability and Climate Policy, 04229 Leipzig, Germany
    Faculty of Law and Interdisciplinary Faculty, University of Rostock, 18051 Rostock, Germany)

  • Lea Moana Weber

    (Research Unit Sustainability and Climate Policy, 04229 Leipzig, Germany)

  • Wiktoria Gradzka

    (Research Unit Sustainability and Climate Policy, 04229 Leipzig, Germany)

Abstract

Food is wasted throughout the entire food supply chain—from agricultural production to the household level. This has negative impacts on natural resources and the environment. At the same time, food waste is undermining the global target of food security. In turn, reducing food waste can minimise the environmental effects of agriculture on climate, biodiversity, soils, water bodies and the atmosphere. All of this is reflected in the fact that food waste is subject to various legal acts of the European Union and that it is also a major subject in the new EU Farm to Fork Strategy from May 2020. Supported by an analysis of the diffuse empirical data on food waste, the purpose of this article is to analyse the current EU legislation on food waste and its reduction to answer the following research questions: How is food waste integrated into European policies? What is the impact of European legislation on food waste? Is European legislation sufficient to trigger not only food waste reduction but also comprehensive changes in the agricultural and food sector to support global climate and environmental targets as set in the Paris Agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity? Which instruments are the most suitable to do so? Methodologically, a qualitative governance analysis is applied. It is found that relevant legal acts for governing food waste include circular economy and waste law, the Common Agricultural Policy and the Common Fisheries Policy as well as food law, while international environmental targets serve as an overarching measure for governance analysis. The legal analysis shows that existing legislation lacks steering effect to significantly reduce food waste. To overcome current governance problems, the article introduces economic policy instruments. It is concluded that quantity control focusing on overarching parameters such as fossil fuels or animal-derived products has not only the potential to reduce food waste by increasing food prices but can also address the multiple interlinked environmental challenges of the agricultural and food sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Beatrice Garske & Katharine Heyl & Felix Ekardt & Lea Moana Weber & Wiktoria Gradzka, 2020. "Challenges of Food Waste Governance: An Assessment of European Legislation on Food Waste and Recommendations for Improvement by Economic Instruments," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(7), pages 1-23, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:9:y:2020:i:7:p:231-:d:385597
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    11. Madhura Rao & Aalt Bast & Alie Boer, 2023. "Understanding the phenomenon of food waste valorisation from the perspective of supply chain actors engaged in it," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 11(1), pages 1-20, December.
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    13. Phemelo Tamasiga & Taghi Miri & Helen Onyeaka & Abarasi Hart, 2022. "Food Waste and Circular Economy: Challenges and Opportunities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-30, August.
    14. Silas Mukwarami & Chekani Nkwaira & Huibrecht Margaretha van der Poll, 2023. "Environmental Management Accounting Implementation Challenges and Supply Chain Management in Emerging Economies’ Manufacturing Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-18, January.
    15. Aiolfi, Simone, 2023. "Green Digital Nudging and channel relationships," OSF Preprints 8wuzy, Center for Open Science.
    16. Beatrice Garske & Antonia Bau & Felix Ekardt, 2021. "Digitalization and AI in European Agriculture: A Strategy for Achieving Climate and Biodiversity Targets?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-21, April.
    17. Sarfraz, Muddassar & Iqbal, Kashif & Wang, Yichu & Bhutta, Muhammad Shoaib & Jaffri, Zain ul Abidin, 2023. "Role of agricultural resource sector in environmental emissions and its explicit relationship with sustainable development: Evidence from agri-food system in China," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    18. Katharine Heyl & Felix Ekardt & Paula Roos & Jessica Stubenrauch & Beatrice Garske, 2021. "Free Trade, Environment, Agriculture, and Plurilateral Treaties: The Ambivalent Example of Mercosur, CETA, and the EU–Vietnam Free Trade Agreement," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-24, March.
    19. Dimitrie Stoica & Angela-Eliza Micu & Maricica Stoica, 2022. "The Impact of Economic Drivers on Food Loss Management," Ovidius University Annals, Economic Sciences Series, Ovidius University of Constantza, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 0(1), pages 753-761, September.
    20. Yannis E. Doukas & Luca Salvati & Ioannis Vardopoulos, 2023. "Unraveling the European Agricultural Policy Sustainable Development Trajectory," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-24, September.

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