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Quantifying Food Waste in the Hospitality Sector and Exploring Its Underlying Reasons—A Case Study of Lahore, Pakistan

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Listed:
  • Nouman Afzal

    (Food and Markets, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Lahore 54600, Pakistan)

  • Abdul Basit

    (Department of Plant Pathology, College of Agriculture, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China)

  • Adil Daniel

    (Food and Markets, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Lahore 54600, Pakistan)

  • Nausheen Ilyas

    (Kauser Abdulla School of Life Sciences, Forman Christian College (A Chartered University), Lahore 54600, Pakistan)

  • Asad Imran

    (Food and Markets, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Lahore 54600, Pakistan)

  • Zoia Arshad Awan

    (Food and Markets, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Lahore 54600, Pakistan)

  • Effie Papargyropoulou

    (Sustainability Research Institute, School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK)

  • Lindsay C. Stringer

    (Department of Environment and Geography, University of York, Wentworth Way, York YO10 5DD, UK)

  • Mohamed Hashem

    (Department of Biology, College of Science, King Khalid University, Abha 61413, Saudi Arabia
    Botany and Microbiology Department, Faculty of Science, Assiut University, Assiut 71516, Egypt)

  • Saad Alamri

    (Department of Biology, College of Science, King Khalid University, Abha 61413, Saudi Arabia)

  • Muhammad Amjad Bashir

    (Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Ghazi University, Dera Ghazi Khan 32200, Pakistan)

  • Yunzhou Li

    (Department of Plant Pathology, College of Agriculture, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China)

  • Nazish Roy

    (Kauser Abdulla School of Life Sciences, Forman Christian College (A Chartered University), Lahore 54600, Pakistan)

Abstract

Given that about 40% of the total food produced globally is lost or wasted, there is an urgent need to understand what, where, why and how much food waste is generated. In this study, we collected the much-needed primary empirical data from the restaurants, hotels and caterers of Lahore, Pakistan through surveys and live tracking/diaries. Specifically, two key performance indicators, waste per customer (g) and percentage waste per day (%), were measured. Waste per customer was found to be 79.9 g (survey) and 73.4 g (live tracking) for restaurants, 138.4 g for hotels and 140.0 g for caterers. Similarly, the percentage of waste per day (%) was found to be 15% (survey) and 17% (live tracking) for restaurants. Results revealed that customer plate leftovers were reported to be the primary source of food waste, followed by inaccurate customer forecasting. Given the food waste levels identified in this study, the development and adoption of a national goal and target aimed at food waste reduction could usefully guide the efforts of all stakeholders. To achieve this, we need to build the capacity of all the relevant stakeholders on food loss and waste measurements and ensure national food waste reporting.

Suggested Citation

  • Nouman Afzal & Abdul Basit & Adil Daniel & Nausheen Ilyas & Asad Imran & Zoia Arshad Awan & Effie Papargyropoulou & Lindsay C. Stringer & Mohamed Hashem & Saad Alamri & Muhammad Amjad Bashir & Yunzhou, 2022. "Quantifying Food Waste in the Hospitality Sector and Exploring Its Underlying Reasons—A Case Study of Lahore, Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-17, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:11:p:6914-:d:832412
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    References listed on IDEAS

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