Life cycle sustainability assessment of a multi-technology action for food loss and waste prevention.

Abstract

Background: Food waste persists as a global challenge, with upstream preventive technological innovations still insufficiently evaluated for their sustainability performance despite policy pressure and the Sustainable Development Goals. The objective of this article is to present a sustainability assessment, from a life-cycle perspective, of an innovative food waste prevention and reduction (FLWPR) action that integrates multiple technologies within the fresh potato supply chain and to examine to what extent the food waste hierarchy aligns with multidimensional sustainability criteria. The intervention applies to a pilot phase technology that consists of advanced imaging and sensor-based detection system to identify internal defects in potatoes early in the supply chain. Potatoes identified as defective are redirected for valorization using commercially available technology into fifth-range products, animal feed, or starch.

Methods: The multi-technological FLWPR action is assessed by applying a Sustainability Life Cycle Assessment using the EF 3.1 method for environmental impacts, a SHDB-based method for social impacts, and Life Cycle Costing for the economic dimension.

Results: Demonstrate a substantial reduction in food loss and waste, a reduction in the impacts of the three pillars of sustainability and a successful implementation of circular economy practices.

Conclusions: The contribution of this work lies in providing one of the first holistic life-cycle sustainability evaluations of an upstream preventive technological FLWPR action. It demonstrates how the impacts observed during a pilot phase of a technological intervention can be effectively complemented by already commercialized technologies, thereby generating significant system-wide benefits. Moreover, the work highlights pathways to reinforce circularity and enhance sustainability across food supply chains.