Detta kandidatarbete kommer undersöka hur vi designar en smart applikation i köket för att bidra till ett minskat matslöseri. Vi går in i undersökningen med frågan “Hur kan en smart applikation i köket göra vardagen trevligare och lättare, samt bidra till ett minskat matslöseri?”. Vi forskar inom matslöseri, smarta hem, smarta kylskåp och QR-koder. Utifrån denna forskning designar vi upp en prototyp för ett smart kök i form av en applikation. Vi bildar en egen uppfattning på konceptet det smarta köket. Det kommer finnas en genomgång på hur vi gestaltar vår lösning till frågeställningen och vilka metoder som använts för att komma fram till slutresultatet. / This Bachelor Thesis will examine how to design a smart appliance in the kitchen to help reduce food waste. We go into the survey with the question "How can a smart application in the kitchen make the living day more enjoyable and easier, as well as contribute to a reduced food waste?". We research in food waste, smart homes, smart refrigerators and QR codes. Based on this research, we design a prototype for a smart kitchen in the form of a mobile application. We form our own perception of the concept of the smart kitchen. There will be a review of how we shape our solution to the question and the methods used to arrive at the final result.

Food waste is a major environmental issue. It takes electricity, water, and energy to produce food, to store it, to refrigerate it, to transport it and to prepare it. If for some reason the food is then not consumed, it goes to landfill, where it produces greenhouse gases. The fact that food waste is a significant contributor to the tourism industry’s negative impact on the environment has not received as much attention from tourism academics as one could expect, given the magnitude of the problem in tourism, neither has it been given much attention on how to handle it. This study therefore looks into ways to alter consumer food waste as well as identifying the opportunities of food service strategies that allow reducing food waste, while at the same time maintaining the quality of the service at a hotel in Kalmar. The research used social practice theory (SPT) and the concept of service quality as a theoretical framework to guide the collection as well as the analysis. The empirical work of this study consists of two phases, where firstly an exploratory phase was conducted to measure food waste from the breakfast buffet and to conduct a customer survey to point out possible initiatives to reduce food waste. The responses and results were then further analyzed to find patterns and themes which formed the explanatory phase, focusing on assessing the interest of hotel management to adopt solutions reducing food wasted from the breakfast service. The results and analysis proved that most participants, whether consumers or providers, already have a general idea of what sustainable food consumption means as well as engaging in sustainable practices and behaviors. The analysis of the results through the framework of SPT revealed that the factors that motivate participants to engage in sustainable behaviors resonate more to sustainable consumption rather than reducing the consumption, which can be a reason for the vast amount of food waste. However, the results revealed that though there is a growing movement towards reducing food waste as well as straightforward strategies that can be implemented to reduce food waste, there is still a need to try and change the fundamental behaviors to become more sustainable in that matter.

The world food production is more than enough to meet the needs of the entire population of the earth, but the losses in the different production stages and the preparation and consumption make this amount produced becomes inadequate. In a hungry world in which we live, any food waste could mean the end of all human life. Although the harvesting techniques and logistics are constantly enhanced, and the quantity and quality of food prepared in homes and restaurants, the waste is still large. Restaurants should prepare only what you need and customers should not serve in excess. This study aims to identify the possible "bottlenecks" where food is wasted in the University Restaurant (RU) of the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM) and propose measures that seek to reduce such waste. The subject is justified by the need to reduce costs in the public sector in order to continuously improve the quality of services, the sustainability of the planet and fighting hunger. To reach that goal, we used the methodology of case study, qualitative approach and descriptive. Data were collected through a questionnaire conducted during the year 2013, with users from the RU about the possible causes which impel them to leave remnants in the dishes. The results highlight the need for changes in the menu and change as preparing meals, providing plates and cups of different sizes and obligation in scheduling meals to reduce food waste in the RU. / A produção mundial de alimentos é mais que suficiente para suprir as necessidades de toda a população da terra, porém as perdas nas diferentes fases produtivas bem como na preparação e consumo fazem com que essa quantidade produzida se torne insuficiente. Em um mundo faminto no qual se vive, qualquer desperdício de alimentos pode significar o fim de mais uma vida humana. Ainda que as técnicas de colheita e logística sejam aperfeiçoadas constantemente, bem como a quantidade e qualidade dos alimentos preparados em residências e restaurantes, o desperdício ainda é grande. Os restaurantes devem preparar somente o necessário e os clientes não devem se servir em excesso. O presente estudo tem como objetivo identificar os possíveis gargalos por onde os alimentos são desperdiçados no Restaurante Universitário (RU) da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM) e propor medidas que busquem reduzir esses desperdícios. O tema justifica-se pela necessidade de reduzir os custos do setor público visando melhorar permanentemente a qualidade dos serviços prestados, a sustentabilidade do planeta e o combate a fome. Para atingir o objetivo proposto, utilizou-se a metodologia de estudo de caso, de abordagem qualitativa e caráter descritivo. Os dados foram coletados por meio da aplicação de um questionário realizado durante o ano de 2013, com os usuários do RU sobre as possíveis causa que os levam a deixar restos nos pratos. Os resultados obtidos evidenciam a necessidade de alterações no cardápio e mudanças na forma de preparo das refeições, disponibilização de pratos e copos de tamanhos diferenciados e obrigatoriedade no agendamento de refeições para reduzir o desperdício de alimentos no RU.

Although food waste is known to have a negative impact on the environment, little research about the causes for food waste in school and kindergarten kitchens has been made. In order to identify factors with a significant influence on food waste in schools and kindergartens, divided into plate and serving waste, correlation analysis was performed on quantitative factors. Among the factors that were analyzed, children’s age (n=35, p<0.001, Kendall’s rank correlation tau=0.44), the number of semesters with food waste measurements (n=151, p<0.05, Kendall’s rank correlation tau=0.15) and portion size as an indicator for overproduction (n=97, p<0.01, Spearman’s rank correlation rho=0.28) were significantly increasing plate waste. Serving waste was significantly increased by portion size (n=97, p<0.0001, Spearman’s rank correlation rho=0.42) and was generally higher in satellite units than in production units (n=142, p<0.05, Pearson’s product-moment correlation r=0.19). Multiple linear regression models were developed to quantify the factors’ impact on plate, serving and total waste. While possible causes for serving waste should be further researched, the model for plate waste explained over 70 % of the variation in plate waste in schools and kindergartens. Due to the correlation between children’s age and plate waste, schools with students in higher grades could introduce more structured lunch breaks in order to reduce their plate waste. Furthermore, plate waste could be reduced if students are constantly aware of the food waste issue. Schools and kindergartens should also improve the grounds for the planning of their food production to reduce their portion sizes.

Packaging has been on the environmental agenda for decades. It has been discussed and debated within the society mainly as an environmental problem. Production, distribution and consumption of food and drinks contribute significant to the environmental impact. However, consumers in the EU waste about 20% of the food they buy. The function of packaging in reducing the amount of food losses is an important but often neglected environmental issue. This thesis focuses on the functions of packaging that can be used to preserve resources efficiently and reduce the environmental impact of the food-packaging system. The service perspective is used to increase knowledge about consumer interaction with packages. Fifteen packaging attributes, for example, ‘easy to empty’, ‘hygienic’ and ‘contain the right quantity’, were identified as influencing the amount of food losses at the consumer. The result showed that there are potentials to both increase consumer satisfaction and decrease the environmental impact of the food-packaging system, when new packaging design reduces food losses. A model was developed that calculates the balance of environmental impact between reduction of food losses, and more packaging material. The result showed that it can be environmentally motivated to increase the environmental impact of packaging, if the amount of food losses is reduced. This is especially true for food items with high environmental impact, e.g. meat and dairy products, and for food items that have a high share of loss, e.g. bread. I have also explored to what extent packaging can influence food losses in households. The study showed that about 20% to 25% of household food waste was related to packaging. The households noted three packaging attributes as the main causes for food losses; ‘too big packaging’, ‘difficult to empty’ and ‘best-before-date’. Finally there is a discussion of packaging research in the context of sustainability principles, and suggestions for further research. / <p>Paper IV was still a manuscript at the time of the thesis defense.</p>

Food waste has implications for the people, the planet, and profits. It presents a global problem which normally requires a local solution. Around 6% of the global food loss occurs in Latin America. However, the region lacks a clear strategy to address the issue, which is also true at the national level for countries such as Guatemala. Furthermore, the perception of different actors in the country towards food waste and its management remains unknown. The aim of this research is to explore on the attitudes towards food waste that might exist in the country by focusing on the restaurant sector with the objective of producing a holistic understanding of the issue. Concentration on the restaurant sector provides additional information of the matter, on a sector that shows limited research on it. To fulfill this objective, a case study was conducted, one that involved the participation of three actors directly related to restaurants as either managers or owners and an actor involved in the Municipality of Guatemala City. The research utilized semi-structured interviews and a review of the literature available on the subject as means of data gathering. The analysis was supported using the Triple Bottom Line Framework, a Positional Analysis ideology, the Sustainable Development Goals and the EU Waste Framework Directive. The results showed varied perceptions from the actors on the categorization of food waste, although impacts on an economic, environmental, and social dimension derived from food waste were acknowledged by all of them; being the latter the most prominent. For the actors, the generation of food waste was significant at the customer level, but was also influenced by the type of service provided by the restaurants. Additionally, the approaches selected by them to either directly or indirectly manage food waste covered a vast range of actions. Finally, the actors understood as key for addressing the food waste issue, the raising of awareness on the subject.

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The in-flight catering industry is a major contributor to food wastage. This wastage is a direct result of the deliberate overproduction of in-flight meals to protect against meal shortages and dissatisfied passengers. With the global strive towards sustainability and the resulting impact of wastage on a company's corporate image, in-flight catering companies need a solution that strives to achieve zero waste and a 100% passenger satisfaction level. This dissertation evaluates the value of combining product substitution and demand uncertainty within an inventory decision-making model as a potential solution opportunity for the wastage dilemma faced by the in-flight catering industry. The decision-making model's purpose is to assist in-flight caterers to make improved decisions regarding the quantity of each meal type to produce for the specific flight under consideration. The model developed is defined as a stochastic multi-objective mixed-integer programming model with fixed recourse and two-way, stock-out based, partial consumer-driven (static) product substitution. The model relies on the output of a forecasting model, that consists of a time-inhomogeneous Markov Chain and a multiple regression model, to forecast the probability distribution of a flight's aggregate meal demand. Due to the lack of available data from public sources, synthetic data is generated to evaluate the model developed. The model is compared against three alternative models that lack either demand uncertainty, product substitution or both to validate the value of including these elements in the decision-making model. The comparison results indicate that the inclusion of the passenger load uncertainty improves the model's average reliability to achieve a 92% minimum passenger satisfaction level with at least 9.2%. Furthermore, it is shown that the stochastic passenger load model produces an average of 2.2 fewer surplus meals per flight instance at the expense of a 3.3% lower reliability when including the substitution behaviour of passengers. This substitution model's superior waste minimisation is attributed to the model's inherent risk-pooling capabilities, and further analysis shows that the value of product substitution increases when the model becomes more constrained. It is, therefore, concluded that the value of product substitution depends on the in-flight caterer's bias towards maximising either reliability or performance. / Dissertation (MEng (Industrial Engineering))--University of Pretoria, 2021. / Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) / Industrial and Systems Engineering / MEng / Unrestricted

Background: Circular economy has received an increasing amount of attention and a move towards a circular economy recently became a top priority within the EU. The food industry contributes to a large amount of the anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. In spite of this few studies have explored circular economy in regard to grocery store companies. The lack of prior research in the area serves as a motivation to carry out this study.  Purpose: The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze how grocery store companies have developed their communication to influence their customers’ behaviors and influence the relationship they have with them. Research question: How has the communication regarding a circular economy developed within grocery store companies during 2014-2020? Method: A content analysis of Swedish grocery store companies’ annual reports and sustainability reports between the years 2014-2020 has been conducted. Qualitative coding was mainly used, but some quantitative elements occur. The coding emanated from the two themes plastic and food waste. Results and conclusion: This study shows that the grocery store companies’ circular communication have congregated as a result of changes in the social expectations. The companies have concretized the idea of a circular economy and have introduced their own initiatives to reach it. / Bakgrund: Cirkulär ekonomi är ett begrepp som blivit alltmer uppmärksammat. En övergång till cirkulär ekonomi är numera en av EU:s främsta prioriteringar. Matindustrin bidrar till en stor del av de antropogena utsläppen av växthusgaser. Trots detta finns det få studier som kopplar samman ämnena cirkulär ekonomi och dagligvaruhandel. Bristen på tidigare forskning motiverade att denna studie genomfördes. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att beskriva och analysera hur företag inom dagligvaruhandeln har utvecklat sin kommunikation om cirkulär ekonomi för att påverka sina kunders beteende och relationen de har med dem.  Frågeställning: Hur har kommunikationen kring cirkulär ekonomi utformats inom dagligvaruhandeln mellan åren 2014–2020? Metod: I denna undersökning har en innehållsanalys av aktörerna i den svenska dagligvaruhandelns års- och hållbarhetsrapporter mellan åren 2014–2020 genomförts. Främst användes kvalitativ kodning, men vissa kvantitativa inslag förekommer. Kodningen utgick ifrån begreppen plast och matavfall. Resultat och slutsats: Resultatet av denna studie visar att företagen inom dagligvaruhandeln utformat och ökat sin cirkulära kommunikation på liknande sätt som en följd av förändringar i samhällets förväntningar. Företagen har konkretiserat begreppet cirkulär ekonomi och presenterat egna initiativ för att uppnå det.

The EU has embarked on a resource efficiency trajectory in order to solve resource scarcity and general sustainability issues. The conversion of food waste into fuel is considered resource efficient as it makes use of resources that would otherwise be discarded. On the other hand, the food sector affects the environment substantially as it is inherently resource intensive and excessive. The purpose of the study was to assess how resource efficient the food waste substrate (feedstock for energy production) is from a life-cycle perspective. The study also aimed to determine if associated Swedish incentives and current market signals promote resource efficiency in Sweden. The food waste substrate has a complex life-cycle and current analyses neglect crucial life-cycle impacts. This makes resource efficiency difficult to determine in absolute terms. The first resource efficiency principle, that promotes the use of fewer inputs, becomes questionable as the food waste substrate has twice as many input stages in comparison to the food crop substrate. The second principle, stating that the food waste substrate should contribute to a low-carbon economy, also falls short due to a calculation method that neglects crucial emission stages. Due to the absent life-cycle perspective, crucial environmental impacts associated with food production are neglected. This affects the achievement of the Swedish Generation Goal and environmental quality objectives. The study concludes that the food waste substrate should undergo a thorough life-cycle analysis. Furthermore, it should be compared to other biofuel options in order to determine degree of resource efficiency. Only then can an appropriate set of EU and national policy measures be instated to safeguard scarce resources and promote a sustainable agriculture and energy sector.