The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the food service processes and operations in many ways, such as the use of contactless payment methods or ordering systems has increased. Despite the pandemic-related obstacles the sector faces, SDG12.3, halving food waste at the retail and consumer levels by 2030, needs to be achieved. This study therefore examines the two questions: How far has the pandemic affected the generation of food waste and the implementation of prevention measures? How does the use of digital technology, which has been increasingly accessed since the beginning of the pandemic, offer opportunities to further reduce food waste in the sector? Two online surveys were conducted. In the first survey, 84% of the 170 respondents indicated not to implement further food waste reduction measures since the start of the pandemic, while 11% do. They engaged in more targeted purchasing activities based on more conscious planning of the production volume, the reduction of menus offered, and the standardisation of menu components. In total, 91 food service companies provided data on the food wasted (in %) before and since the pandemic. Of the 179 entries made for the different waste categories, 47% indicated waste had not changed, while 42% and 11% indicated an increase/decrease, respectively. In the context of the ongoing digitalisation of the sector, possible fields of action for digital applications were identified, which are helpful in combating food waste in general and specifically during the pandemic. In this study, a classification scheme for digital food waste reduction approaches was developed. These approaches are systemised into four categories: forecasting, waste analysis, redistribution, and measures catalogue. Further, the process steps in which the applications are applied are indicated and direct and indirect effects on the generation of food waste are provided.

COVID-19 大流行在许多方面影响了食品服务流程和运营，例如非接触式支付方式或订购系统的使用有所增加。尽管该行业面临与流行病相关的障碍，但需要实现 SDG12.3，即到 2030 年将零售和消费者层面的食物浪费减半。因此，本研究探讨了两个问题：大流行对食物垃圾的产生和预防措施的实施有多大影响？自大流行开始以来越来越多地使用数字技术，如何为进一步减少该部门的食物浪费提供机会？进行了两次在线调查。在第一项调查中，170 名受访者中有 84% 表示自大流行开始以来不会采取进一步减少厨余的措施，而 11% 表示会这样做。他们基于更有意识地规划生产量、减少提供的菜单以及菜单组件的标准化，开展更有针对性的采购活动。总共有 91 家食品服务公司提供了大流行前后食物浪费的数据（以百分比表示）。在为不同废物类别制作的 179 个条目中，47% 表示废物没有变化，而分别有 42% 和 11% 表示增加/减少。在该部门正在进行的数字化的背景下，确定了数字应用的可能行动领域，这有助于在总体上特别是在大流行期间打击食物浪费。在这项研究中，制定了数字食物垃圾减少方法的分类方案。这些方法被系统化为四类：预测、废物分析、重新分配和措施目录。此外，指出了应用程序的过程步骤，并提供了对食物垃圾产生的直接和间接影响。