A Holistic Circular Economy Model for a Sustainable Supply Chain in the Food Sector

Introduction

Food is not simply a commercial commodity like any other. Food is categorized as the most essential component of human life. The global food system is described as complex, with a comprehensively integrated network representing the entire range of stakeholders, resources, and activities along the entire food supply chain, including food manufacturing, handling and storing, transportation, consumption, and disposal worldwide. Food is viewed as an interconnected urban infrastructure, according to Fassio and Minotti (2019), with an increasing awareness of its central role in our survival in urban environments, as well as in the well-being, sustainability, and prosperity of all. Regrettably, in the past few years, it has become crucial that the food supply is not sustainable, equitable, or resilient (Jensen and Orfila, 2021).

Today, food waste and loss have sparked concerns and worries in both the local and international governmental and non-governmental sectors, as they have emerged as some of the most difficult social issues to address globally. “Food loss (FL)” or even “food waste (FW)” has become terminology that is often used interchangeably to describe the cumulative amount of waste and losses throughout the entire food supply chain (FSC) activities, including production, post-harvest, processing, distribution, and consumption. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, food waste is a part of food loss. Food loss (FL) was defined by Vilarino et al. (2017) as a reduction in edible food mass that occurs during various stages of the food supply chain (FSC) such as the production, and other processing activities like cooling, cleaning, sorting and packing stages before it reaches the desired point of demand. Meanwhile, food waste (FW) is referred to as food that is of adequate quality and acceptable for human intake but is not consumed because it is discarded during the distribution and consumption stages. Many actors and stakeholders contribute to food waste and food loss, including farmers, food distributors, food outlets or restaurants, food stalls, cafes, hotels, households, and individuals. Although the food industry continues to face challenges such as food security, waste, farming, and public health, dilemmas such as climate change have already emerged. About one in three of all edibles destined for human consumption are lost or wasted around the world, accumulating to roughly 1.3 billion metric tonnes per year (Vilarino et al., 2017). According to a study conducted by Zou et al. (2022), more than 98% of the nutrients in food waste and human waste produced in metropolitan areas are directly landfilled, burned, or discarded without reuse or recycling. Meanwhile, approximately 32% of all food loss and waste happens during the primary production phase. While 44% occur during the storage and processing stages, which are typically caused by inadequate cold storage facilities. This would be a symptom of a larger problem that could contribute greatly to the collapse of the global food system.

According to the UNEP Food Waste Index Report (2021), global food losses and waste across the food supply chain (FSC) were approximately 931 million tonnes in 2019. The report further indicated that 61% of waste was generated by households, 26% from food service, and nearly 13% from retail. In Malaysia, an estimated 38,142 tonnes of waste were generated per day in 2018, with food waste accounting for 44.5% of the total. Furthermore, SWCorp (2015) predicted that during the holiday season, food waste would increase by 15% to 20%. Food waste generates over 1.3 billion tonnes of waste per year and 3.3 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases. Malaysia's total food waste is increasing year after year due to a lack of a comprehensive strategic model. This would be a symptom of a larger problem that could contribute greatly to the collapse of the global food system. ICLEI (2022) stated that transforming our current dominant global food supply is a necessity due to numerous environmental effects throughout the entire food supply chain.