Assessment Of The Environmental Impact Of Current And Future Food Waste Generation And Management In Chinese Provinces

Major environmental and climate changes are driven by variations in socioeconomic development.Since the past few years,China has witnessed the most rapid development in the global history,leading to a double-digit economic growth,exploding urbanization,improved standard of living,and rapidly changing food consumption pattern.These changes have consequently been accompanied by rapid growth of solid waste as well as exponential increase in food waste generation.The problem of food waste,its unsustainable management,and associated environmental consequences are becoming great concerns in many Chinese provinces.The battle against food waste is a collective fight,and particular for China,an optimal result can be achieved when provinces/cities are strongly integrated towards achieving a common goal.Hence,having the knowledge of food waste activity at the provincial level is crucial to developing localized strategies for sustainable consumption.More so,exploring the future scenarios of food waste and its treatment based on possible future development paths could be pivotal in devising effective mitigation policies and adaptation strategies.This study assessed the current and future status of food waste and its management,and the associated environmental impact in Chinese provinces from life cycle perspective.Additionally,the environmental consequences of common food waste treatment methods were also compared.Based on the result obtained in this study,food waste in China was estimated to be 61.37 Mt in 2020 and could be as high as 100.95-139.82 Mt by 2040,under various socioeconomic pathways.On per capita basis,the average per capita food waste in China has increased by 29.67%from 2016 at an average annual growth rate of 6.71%.Tianjin was found to have the highest per capita food waste,and is characterized by the high wasteful habit of tourists in the city.At a magnified scale,Sichuan had the highest food waste by volume,which was majorly affected by its dense population and high food consumption resulting to more likelihood of waste.Correspondingly,the GHG emission of food waste in China was estimated to be 149.25 Mt CO2eq in 2020,and is largely influence by the varieties of food consumed and wasted in each province.The environmental burden of food waste is projected to increase by 70-148%under different socioeconomic development pathways.The result of the evaluation of common food waste treatment techniques in China shows that anaerobic digestion is more environmentally friendly than other forms of treatment.The use of anaerobic digestion demands freshwater consumption which may be challenging for Chinese provinces facing the problem of water scarcity;however,diverting food waste to anaerobic digestion can reduce the GHG emissions associated with food waste treatment by～74%by 2040.China’s transition to sustainable waste management may be impeded and unsustainable economic-wise if many Chinese provinces continue to build on their current food waste management trend.These findings could be pivotal in setting food waste reduction goals at provincial level and devising strategies to ensure active involvement of community in food waste reduction programs.