Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to measure food loss and waste by material flow analysis (MFA) tool. Applying this methodology, the authors estimate wastage-related losses and discuss opportunities for more circular and sustainable practices in the Italian potato industry.

Design/methodology/approach

MFA is applied to two specific typologies as follows: ready-to-eat (chips) and dried potato products produced in Italy. The analysis refers to the year 2017 as the complete dataset useful for this study includes measurements until this year. A bottom-up and top-down mixed approach is applied, and functional unit refers to 1 t of potatoes consumed as final product.

Findings

MFA is applied to quantify and qualify material balance associated with 1 t of potatoes consumed as final product. In Italy, in 2017, more than 22,000 t of fresh tubers were lost, including 3,500–4,800 t of starch, equivalent to 52,800–72,600 GJs. Moreover, fewer than 23,000 t of skins and scraps were produced within industrial plants, not available for food but suitable for animal feed (dry skins are an excellent carbohydrates source in cattle and poultry feed), starch industry and bioenergy production (biogas and/or bioethanol).

Originality/value

This research is one of the few studies proposing MFA methodology as a tool to measure food waste. This analysis shows its utility in terms of food waste quality/quantity evaluation, supporting both company management and policymakers.

中文翻译：

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如何衡量粮食损失和浪费？物料流分析应用

目的

本文的目的是通过物质流分析（MFA）工具测量食物损失和浪费。应用这种方法，作者估计了与浪费相关的损失，并讨论了意大利马铃薯行业采取更多循环和可持续实践的机会。

设计/方法/方法

MFA适用于以下两种特定类型：即食（薯片）和意大利生产的马铃薯干产品。该分析指的是2017年，因为对本研究有用的完整数据集包括今年之前的测量。采用了自下而上和自上而下的混合方法，功能单位是指将1吨马铃薯作为最终产品消耗。

发现

MFA用于量化和验证与作为最终产品消耗的1吨马铃薯相关的物料平衡。在意大利，2017年损失了超过22,000吨新鲜块茎，包括3,500–4,800吨淀粉，相当于52,800–72,600 GJ。此外，在工业工厂内生产的皮和碎屑不足23,000吨，不能用于食品，但适合用于动物饲料（干皮是牛和家禽饲料中的优良碳水化合物来源），淀粉工业和生物能源生产（沼气和/或生物乙醇）。

创意/价值

这项研究是少数将MFA方法论作为衡量食物浪费的工具的研究之一。该分析显示了其在食物垃圾质量/数量评估方面的效用，为公司管理层和决策者提供了支持。