Qian, Long, Rao, Qingling, Liu, Hongbo, McCarthy, Breda, Liu, Li Xian, and Wang, Lingen (2022) Food waste and associated carbon footprint:Evidence from Chinese universities. Ecosystem Health and Sustainability, 8 (1). 2130094.

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Abstract

In recent years there has been widespread concern regarding the carbon footprint of food waste, particularly as China's food waste is rising with its economic development. China has the largest scale of higher education in the world, and the amount of food waste in university canteens is considerable and cannot be ignored. This study attempts to assess the carbon footprint (CF) of food waste at Chinese universities. It is estimated that 1.55 million tons of food were wasted in Chinese university canteens in 2018 based on 9,192 samples covering 29 provinces in China. The associated CF was 2.51 Mt CO2eq. The top two food categories contributing to the total CF were meat and grains, accounting for 46.28% and 36.5 2%, respectively. Furthermore, the location of the university was significantly associated with the CF of plate waste I t also indicates that household income, meal satisfaction, sex, education, meal days, and food saving campaigns are important factors influencing the CF of food waste This study highlights areas that can help reduce the environmental impact of plate waste. It also provides targeted measures to reduce the associated CF of food waste in Chinese universities.

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