A virtual web net to eco-manage food packaging waste

Abstract

Latest data published by Eurostat (the statistical office of the EU) showed that, in Europe, 80 million tons of packaging waste were produced in 2008. We can also notice that Italy alone produces about 8 tons of packaging waste per year arising from the food industry. This paper deals with the problem of waste deriving from packaging produced in pre-and post-production phases of food sector. Through the creation of a "web-based software" which is specifically designed on the basis of the methodological concepts of Systemic Design, whose fundamental principle is that waste (output) of a process becomes resource (input) to another one, the waste of pre- And post-production phases can be managed and reused by other industries. Through the capabilities of the portal, users can thus minimize costs of waste disposal by selling rejects on the Net, use more resources already existing on the spot, improve logistics, expand their market, strengthen ties with other companies and boost the whole local economy.