Environmental Impact Analysis of Food Considering Upcycling

Abstract

Plant-derived reusable resources such as biomass feedstock for fuel use and upcycling food products have attracted attention for solving environmental problems. In general, food products that are inappropriately consumed include various energy production pathways through the fermentation or gasification process, which would be attractive for solving the anaerobic digestion of wasted foods to make livestock feed. In terms of comprehensive aspects, the use of upcycling food products in various ways is also significant for abating environmental burdens. For instance, products made from unutilized food through cooking, such as jams made from banana peels, have been increasingly marketed. However, while the preparation of unused food reduces food loss, the environmental impacts of their life cycle have not been well considered. To date, our research group has discussed effective consumption pathways, including recycling pathways for the edible parts of foods. For instance, a 100 g edible part of tomato has an environmental impact of 35-57 g-CO2 emissions during the cooking stage. The environmental impact of waste would not be negligible. Therefore, the eco-burden mitigation in the entire life cycle stage is discussed based on the proposal of a practical pathway, comparing the other paths (e.g., energy use).