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To create a sustainable
SOCIAL
model for improving the
efficiency and effectiveness
RESPONSIBILI
of Food Waste Management
in the College Canteen
TY
FOOD WASTE
MANAGEMENT IN
COLLEGE CANTEEN
AKSHAT KUMAR
KUNJIKA SINGH
PRADEEP KUMAR
SIYA RAIZADA
VISHWANATH KUMAR
FOOD WASTE MANAGEMENT IN THE COLLEGE CANTEEN
To create a sustainable model for improving the efficiency and
effectiveness of Food Waste Management in the College Canteen.
Abstract
Food waste is defined as all the products discarded from the food chain
while still preserving their nutritional value and complying with the health
and safety standards. This study aims to improve food waste
management with respect to the College Canteen. The proposed research
would concentrate on the disposal of the waste food in the canteen due to
various factors. The main objective of this research would be to improve the
food disposal ways of the Canteen and finding sustainable ways for
efficient & effective production and distribution of the food.
Research Context
The study would be conducted in the Canteen area of the NIFT campus and
would mainly focus on the disposal of the waste food. The current state of
the area has been inspected as being highly dysfunctional in terms of the
food that is served and wasted and how it is disposed. That is why, it is
important to develop an effective and efficient system to control the amount
of food that is going to waste and the way it is being disposed.
Research Questions
Research Methods
The main method for research would be through one-to-one interaction with
the staff that is managing the College Canteen as well as with some of the
students that avail the Canteen service to get a personalized opinion about
the food that is being served. The staff can give real time information about
the preparation and distribution of food as well as the disposal.
Significance of Research
The intended research would be conducted to study and improve the food
waste management system in the College Canteen of NIFT campus. It would
help in understanding the problems that give rise to the insufficient waste
disposal management of the area and how can it be improved by providing a
more effective, efficient and sustainable alternative.
Effectiveness
Efficiency
What is sustainability?
In 1983, the United Nations tapped former Norwegian prime minister Gro
Harlem Brundtland to run the new World Commission on Environment and
Development. After decades of effort to raise living standards through
industrialization, many countries were still dealing with extreme poverty. It
seemed that economic development at the cost of ecological health and
social equity did not lead to long-lasting prosperity. It was clear that the
world needed to find a way to harmonize ecology with prosperity.
After four years, the Brundtland Commission released its final report, Our
Common Future. It famously defines sustainable development as:
Economic Sustainability
Social Sustainability
Universal human rights and basic necessities are attainable by all people,
who have access to enough resources in order to keep their families and
communities healthy and secure. Healthy communities have just leaders who
ensure personal, labour and cultural rights are respected and all people are
protected from discrimination.
Sustainable development has been defined in many ways, but the most
frequently quoted definition is from Our Common Future, also known as the
Brundtland Report:
ii. Improving the quality of human life while living within the carrying
capacity of supporting ecosystems.
iv. Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Everybody has the right to a good standard of living, with better job
opportunities. Economic prosperity is required if our country is to prosper and
our businesses must therefore offer a high standard of products that
consumers throughout the world want, at the prices they are prepared to
pay. For this, we need a workforce equipped with suitable skills and
education within a framework to support them.
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
SUMMARY
Food losses and waste are currently at the heart of academic debates, civil
society initiatives, and political agendas. This paper investigates food waste
in school catering services focusing on six schools located in the municipality
of Verona (Italy). It aims to quantify food waste, as a measure of food
catering inefficiency, to identify the main causes, and to suggest a set of
prevention and reduction interventions. For these purposes food waste is
defined as all the products discarded from the food chain while still
preserving their nutritional value and complying with safety standards. This
research paper attempted to analyze the amount of food waste (i.e., food
processed and still perfectly edible, but not served during the meals) and to
investigate the main causes that lead to the identified amount of unserved
food and so to assess the operational efficiency of the food services to
suggest a recovery intervention model in order to reduce waste amounts and
improve a rational (economic) use of resources.
Case Study
For the research, a case study of six schools was conducted, consisting of
three Primary schools and three first grade secondary schools. Meals were
produced in a centralized cooking facility and then distributed to each
school. The products, transported in isothermal steel food containers
(Gastronorm), were then portioned and served at tables to the children. Once
the service was completed, unserved meals were made available for
collection by the charitable organizations volunteers.
During the first year (2008-2009), a preliminary analysis of the efficiency of
the canteen management system was conducted in which each portion of
unserved food was weighted, and its temperature was measured and
recorded.
During the third year (2010-2011), data and information were collected along
with food recovery. Collected data focused of food recovery, treatment, and
transport. At the end of each day, unserved food was transferred to other
insulated containers in order to maintain its physical characteristics. In the
case of warm food, the proper conservation temperature was set to at least
65 C, while for cold food it was not to exceed 4 C. When the indicated
limits were not observed, food was not recovered.
Result
The analysis suggested that during the period of investigation the catering
service management had a high level of inefficiency, measured as the
amount of food processed but not served. This amount represented an
average of 15.31% (6523.35 kg) of the overall processed food.
(c) Food served but not consumedwaste arising from food served during
the catering service but not completely consumed by students (dish
leftovers).
Conclusion
Among the causes identified in the study, the most relevant ones are: lack of
attention to dietary habits, rigid food procurement specifications, menu
composition, and meal presentation. In order to increase catering efficiency,
the study suggested an integrated strategy that involves the catering service
and other key stakeholders such as families and local and national
administrations. On the catering side, the research showed the need for at
least two types of intervention: reduction of the rigidity of standard rations
for each food type, to adjust the quantity of food when it is excessive; and
revision of the menus to avoid alternative products being served on the
same menu. An additional measure to increase efficiency is represented by
information campaigns aimed at improving dietary habits so as to decrease
the consumption of products with high caloric content, such as sweet and
salty snacks and sparkling beverages, which were identified as one of the
reasons why students refuse meals.
References:
http://www.insightsquared.com/2013/08/effectiveness-vs-efficiency-whats-
the-difference/
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/difference-between-efficiency-effectiveness-
business-26009.html
http://www.differencebetween.net/business/difference-between-efficiency-
and-effectiveness/
Research Paper: Food Waste in School Catering- an Italian Case Study
http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/7/11/14745/pdf
Case Study: Food Waste at The School Level- Uppasala, Sweden
www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:742150/FULLTEXT01.pdf