In the past few decades, food waste in the US has skyrocketed. Over 40 million tons of food end up in landfills in the US alone every year. If we add that up to the 1 billion trees worth of paper or 6.92 million tons of e-waste, we can see just how much we waste as a society. And that’s just the United States. The global numbers regarding food waste are even more staggering.
With that in mind, we should not only work hard on recycling the food we throw away but also eliminate waste altogether. One method of doing that is to apply something called the circular economy. In this article, you will find out what circular economy is and how it can impact the reduction and eventual elimination of food waste.
Outlining the Circular Economy
Before we can understand what circular economy is, we first need to go over the economic model that it’s replacing, i.e., linear economy.
In the briefest terms possible, a linear economy is based on the so-called ‘take-make-dispose’ method. Let’s apply this method to the food industry for some context. Firstly, you extract the raw materials from the source (crop harvesting, for instance, or pork and beef from farm animals). Next, you process them into a product that should end up on store shelves for consumption. It can be anything from fresh produce to ground meat or frozen goods. But not all of the food ends up being consumed. In fact, quite a lot of it ends up in landfills, as illustrated by the statistics earlier.
So, what about the circular economy? Well, as its name suggests, it’s an economic model that focuses on reducing the amount of waste by changing the way production and consumption operate. To put it simply, it changes the process of making and using a product in such a way that helps save the environment and save the manufacturer money. Generally speaking, it focuses on the following principles:
- Reducing the amount of raw material we take for production
- Making products with a long shelf-life
- Making products with parts that we can reuse in manufacturing
- Focusing on product quality, so they don’t spoil or break quickly, causing them to end up in landfills
- Making the products easy to disassemble and reassemble, thus easy to repair and/or harvest for raw material
- Recycling or upcycling the products in a way that makes them useful
Applying Circular Economy Principles to the Food Industry
The great thing about circular economy is that it’s applicable across the board. So, if you aim to apply it to the food industry, you can do so in the eight steps listed below.
Step #1: Designing and Marketing New Products
In order to reduce food waste, you need to start at the very first level, that of food manufacturing. Nowadays, you can make sustainable food products that result in less waste and a healthier diet. For instance, crafting artificial proteins and 3D-printing food can play a vital role in how we shape the food industry going forward.
Step #2: Changes to the Production Process
Food production, like many other industries, involves multiple different sectors in charge of various tasks. Farmers do their share, as do the manufacturers, shippers, quality testers, etc. In order for the circular economy to be implemented well, all of these sectors have to work in tandem. That means you will have to coordinate with every single contributor in implementing changes to the production.
Step #3: Smart Distribution
Distributing food the right way is crucial because tons and tons of it end up as waste simply because it wasn’t shipped or handled properly. The solution to this issue can be something as simple as separating distribution routes based on what you’re transporting. For instance, perishable food can travel along a short route so you can keep it preserved longer.
Step #4: Consumer Choices
Changes start with individuals, and what better way to promote a circular economy approach than to lead by example? As a manufacturer, you can encourage your employees or subordinates to apply some zero-waste living methods themselves. Naturally, make sure that you apply them as well.
Step #5: Reusable Products
Food can’t really be reused once you consume it. However, you can definitely reuse the package it comes in. Nowadays, lots of companies invest in sustainable packaging in order to keep the environment safe. Not only is it a green alternative to soft plastic, but it’s also an incredibly creative and efficient marketing tool. After all, most people will save an interesting-looking box and reuse it for some other purpose. You can do the same thing with food packaging, especially if you make or sell confectionery.
Step #6: Waste Recycling
Most people hear about food waste recycling and immediately think of composting. And that’s perfectly fine, since composting is a valid and effective way of recycling excess food items. However, there are also other ways you can recycle this type of waste. For instance, you can use stale bread for fermentation, orange peels for brewing, and even wastewater to get starch.
Another recycling opportunity is using food waste in different industries. A great example is companies finding innovative ways to transform waste generated by food production into fabrics. Learn how they turn food into clothing and accessories.
Step #7: Food Loss Prevention
Using energy from waste is definitely important, but you also need to focus on finding ways of preventing waste accumulation altogether. That will involve drafting and implementing actionable plans such as clear insights into food tracking and quality management. The earlier you implement that during the production process, the better.
Step #8: Raising Awareness
As someone who wants to focus on zero-waste food production, you will have to be an active promoter of it and even an ambassador of sorts. Your task will be to spread as much awareness about the benefits of a circular economy and how it can positively impact everyone in the long run. In addition, you will want to work with the local government offices, the media, and the community in order to reach as many new proponents of the circular economy as possible.
