Edited by: Rosanna Calcagno/Policy Analyst
Food waste in Italian school canteens
Waste prevention and food recovery for human, animal and agricultural purposes
To date, food waste has become a major problem in the national and international community. This issue is not limited to the individuals’ behavior but affects macro areas such as the environment and poverty.
This analysis focuses on food waste specifically within schools. The canteens provide meals to a high percentage of students in our country but at the same time produce a high amount of food scraps. They are therefore not reused, posing a major threat to sustainability and food circularity.
The purpose of this policy brief is to present alternative solutions to waste, addressed to all those involved, in order to create a culture of reuse for the benefit of the whole community.
To read the full analysis, download the attached document
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In recent years, the attention of the civil society towards the issue of environmental sustainability has increased. In this scenario, there has been an increase in awareness of the effects of food waste.
According to FAO data, every year ⅓ of global food production is lost.
This analysis decides to focus in particular on food waste within the school canteens. The aim is to develop some practical solutions following two guidelines: the first is prevention; the second one is to minimize food waste.
The relevance of an intervention in this area must be sought in what the data show: 30% of the food cooked every day is not consumed. Furthermore, it is necessary to bear in mind that the development of educational policies is an investment on the future. Creating awareness means acting in time in the creation of lifestyles that, protracting into the future, can generate a real change.
1. Food waste: definition, causes and consequences
In recent years, institutions and the scientific community have increased interest - and therefore the number of actions implemented - in "food waste". This increase in attention is linked to the growth of the phenomenon that, within a society founded on fast consumption, has been able to easily evolve over time to become a real problem concerning the world community today.
The FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization) defines food waste as “any healthy and eatable substance which - instead of being destined for human consumption - is wasted, lost, degraded or consumed by parasites at every stage of the agri-food chain”.
Data speak for themselves: every year about ⅓ of global food production (1.3 billion tons of food) is wasted even before reaching our tables, that is, both in the early stages of the agri-food chain and in the stages of distribution and final consumption.
If in the first case the causes are to be identified in the lack of adequate technologies to minimize losses, in the second case the origin of the waste is attributable to the behavior of individuals.
The issue of food waste embraces other broader issues: environmental protection and poverty.
First of all, the great environmental impact and therefore the pollution produced by food waste must be considered. If it is true that there is an "inevitable" waste component linked to the production of non-reusable food scraps, it is necessary to point out that wasting food resources means producing a triple dispersion of resources:
- a. dispersion of resources used in the food production phase
- b. dispersion of the product itself
- c. use of additional resources for the disposal phase that could have been avoided
Wasting therefore means generating an increase in greenhouse gas emissions (both in the production phase and in the disposal phase) that could be avoided.
The other major issue that food waste intertwines is that of poverty. Paradoxically, in fact, while one part of the world lives in a situation of food surplus that it cannot consume, another part suffers from hunger and malnutrition and a small part of the former would be enough to solve the problems of the latter.
This is a huge paradox that characterizes our society and the economic and productive system on which it is founded.
Therefore, considering the impacts of food waste and considering that part of it comes from the lifestyle and daily actions of each of us, what opens up is also a great moral question linked to the need for more conscious and sustainable choices.
To date, it is therefore necessary to act in two directions: at the level of food processing and distribution process and in the meantime at the individual level trying to sensitize individuals towards more conscious and sustainable choices.
2. Food waste in Italian schools
Here we have chosen to investigate the issue of food waste within Italian schools. This decision derives both from the extent of the problem and from the relevance of future consequences. In 2019 the Ministry of the Environment, in partnership with the "Reduce" project, conducted an analysis on food waste in school canteens.
The survey results show us that - on average - about 30% of food is not consumed during the meal. 16.7% of this percentage is leftover while 12.7% is untouched food.
In other words, for each child about 500 grams of food are prepared per day, of which 90 grams is left over and thrown away while about 70 grams is intact food, for a total of 160 grams per day of food not consumed by each user of the school canteen.
Most of the food not consumed during the meal consists of bread and fruit, which often remain intact. Fruits and vegetables are generally the least popular foods during meals, a sign that there is a more general problem of food education.
Actually, when we reflect on the causes of this phenomenon, a distinction must be made between two cases: the case in which the food is cooked and not served and the case in which it is cooked, served and not eaten.
In the first case, in fact, there is a problem of scheduling the number of meals and overdosing by the canteens, or in general organizational problems attributable to the kitchen staff.
In the second case, on the other hand, there are various causes including: the behavior of children / young people; the exaggerated portions of meals; the degree of appreciation of what is served; the way the dish is presented; the environment / context in which the unfavorable meal is consumed (difficulty in eating, insufficient time, noisy canteen).
The need to take action on the problem of food waste in school canteens is therefore due to the fact that this problem exists in the canteens of our country. Furthermore, acting through prevention and awareness campaigns for children means exercising an educational function that aims to create lifestyles in the future adults of tomorrow. In other words, a real act of civic education.
3. Action by the national legislator
With reference to the national environment, the most recent regulatory efforts related to the issues of our interest are briefly examined: Law No. 166 of 08/19/2016 (so-called Gadda Law) and the ministerial guidelines addressed to canteen managers to prevent and reduce food waste.
3.1 The Gadda Law
In Italy a turning point in the fight against food waste was reached with the so-called "Gadda Law" (Law No. 166 of 08/19/2016).
In Italy a turning point in the fight against food waste was reached with the so-called "Gadda Law" (Law No. 166 of 08/19/2016).
The law aims to reduce waste in each of the phases of the supply chain in which the product reaches the consumer: production, distribution and administration of food products but also pharmaceuticals and others.
The goals of the legislator are:
a) To recover food surpluses allocating them to human use (people in difficulty);
b) To recover and donate pharmaceutical products, always with the aim of social solidarity;
c) To limit the impact on the environment by reducing waste and thus promoting the reuse of products
d) To achieve the objectives of the National Waste Prevention Program and the National Food Waste Prevention Plan as well as 'reducing the quantity' of biodegradable waste sent for landfill disposal;
e) To promote research, information and awareness on the subjects of the law with particular focus on the new generations.
The tools and methods that Law No. 166 of 08/19/2016 decides to adopt consist in promoting the free transfer of food surpluses by food sector operators to donors. The latter will have as a priority the sale of such foods to needy and destitute subjects. The law therefore puts human reuse first in the more general perspective of social solidarity.
What is not suitable for human consumption is instead destined for animal feed and the creation of composting.
However, the law provides for specific procedures for the sale of surpluses. In fact, there must be a guarantee of adequate preservation and integrity of the packaging, or hygiene and safety requirements that fully comply with the expiry dates and with what is established by the European and national parameters on the subject (Regulation (EC) 852/2004 of the Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004; article 1, paragraph 236, of law no. 147 of 27 December 2013).
At the same time, the legislator aims to simplify donation procedures as well as to widen the range of possible donors. Furthermore, the donation is encouraged through the reduction of the tariff on waste for all the production activities that produce and distribute foodstuffs and which sell them free of charge.
Finally, the commitment of the Gadda Law focuses on two other actions:
The first is to raise awareness through national campaigns promoted by the public radio, television and multimedia service which aim to spread behaviors and best practices for reducing waste in daily life.
The second one is the establishment of a data collection activity for monitoring the phenomenon that is systematic and therefore continuous over time but also as widespread as possible in the territory.
3.2 The "guidelines addressed to the bodies managing school, company, hospital, social and community canteens, in order to prevent and reduce waste associated with food administration"
That of the Ministry of Health is a decalogue that also addresses the school catering service consisting of a series of points that can be summarized as follows:
a. To detect surpluses and residues in order to monitor their amount, trying to involve teachers and students in this activity as well
b. Create an integrated and a coordinated network made up of: Food and Nutrition Hygiene Services, Contracting Body, Contracted Body, Users and Educational Institutions
c. To train teachers on the issue of waste to be able to raise awareness among students.
d. To activate educational paths to make people aware of the issue of food waste and its consequences, involving families if possible
e. To bring the food cooking center closer to the administration center, when possible.
f. To use bread, fruit, and puddings / yogurt that are left over for the next day's snack.
g. To improve the school canteen’s environment and and provide children with enough time to complete the meal
h. To create a bridge between canteen managers and the world of associations for poor people in order to allocate meals not consumed to them.
i. To recycle and recover as much as possible (e.g. creating composting).
4. Policy proposals
As seen, the data on food waste in school canteens are consistent and indicative of the existence of a problem which, although in relation to the totality of daily food waste may be relative, it is still necessary to treat and take into consideration, as well as the ministerial lines have done.
What has been analyzed so far has stimulated reflection on some possible policy solutions to be adopted. They are listed and described below.
4.1 A policy for the redefinition of the menu of school canteens
Part of food waste in school canteens is often linked also to the food preferences of children who, as we know, are narrower than those of adults. Without renouncing food balancing (eg offering French fries every day), the contractor could consider meeting the food needs of users by asking for their direct collaboration (both teachers and pupils).
For example, at the end of each daily meal, an indicative survey could be conducted both by show of hands and collectively to know the preferences of the meals offered. In this way, over time, it would be possible to know and keep track of the (indicative) food preferences of a given school.
Another idea could be to present the same meals but in a more appealing way to children (eg playing with colors and shapes).
4.2 Development of educational food campaigns in classrooms
Training, educating and raising awareness on issues such as food waste should be among the objectives of Italian public education today. In fact, the school fulfills an educational function of no secondary importance in the first years of a student's life. For these reasons it is considered necessary to strengthen the set of projects underway with associations and experts in the sector that are aimed at making pupils aware. The idea is to attract users through concrete data and images (eg images of wasted food piles) relating to both the current situation (in the world) and the reality of the school complex. A simple awareness-raising strategy could be a constant visual and emotional demonstration of the amount of food that is not consumed during meals. By showing pupils the daily food waste and explaining the life cycle of the product to them, it will be possible to act directly on their nutritional and social education.
Investing in educational campaigns in school canteens, making school children and young people aware, does not only mean making a change in their attitude during the meal in the school but potentially also means providing them with the key elements to adopt sustainable lifestyles when they will be adults.
4.3 Recovery of meal surpluses by families: adoption of the "doggybag"
A different strategy to reduce food waste could be to recover the food and send it to the families of the children themselves. The idea constists in providing all children / teenagers with their own thermal and reusable "doggybag" containing the daily leftovers such as bread, fruit and other packaged products (which, as already mentioned, are the most wasted) in a way to encourage reuse, for example within one's own family.
In this case, joining the project would be at the discretion of the family of reference.
4.4 Recoery of meal surpluses by associations for the social sector
As for cooked but not distributed food, the best idea would be to allocate it to associations that deal with poor people. To this end, it is necessary to develop a network of associations willing to participate in this initiative and having time, energy and staff to recover the excess food. An example of associations that should be considered is Banco Alimentare, which already collaborates with some schools. However, these collaborations should be extended and strengthened.
In general, the associations involved should then be placed in a quadrilateral in which the other three vertices are the school, the municipality and the contracting authority.
In this way, the policy action is twofold: on the one hand, intact trays of food are saved from the garbage and on the other hand a meal is offered to those in difficulty.
Obviously, as a prerequisite, the staff inside the canteens should take care of the correct storage and packaging of the meal until it is collected by the representatives of the associations.
4.5 Reuse of surpluses to create animal feed and compost
Another alternative through which to recover food discarded from school canteens is to use it for animal or agricultural consumption.
Through contacts with farms or agricultural communities, it could be thought of reusing the leftovers, destining them both for animal feed and for the creation of compost.
Since most of the dishes offered in school canteens are often poorly seasoned or lacking in spices and flavorings (which are usually unwelcome or suitable for children / teenagers), the first option would be sustainable as the food would be easily converted into food for animals.
The second solution is also sustainable (provided that local farms are interested) and would also have the dual purpose of encouraging the use of organic fertilizers to the detriment of chemical ones.
If among these five alternatives the first two aim to "prevent", the other three are oriented to "cure", thus solving at the same time and with contingency a problem that already exists.
After applying these solutions, it is then essential to evaluate the results obtained over time through careful, widespread and constant monitoring that can provide a complete picture of the impact of the operationally arranged actions.
5. Conclusion
Some data provided by the Ministry of Health on food waste in school canteens testify that an average of 160 grams of food is wasted every day per pupil. By multiplying the quota for each user of the canteen service and for each day of use, the extent of the problem becomes clear to all of us.
After a brief analysis of the relevant legislation - Law 166 of 08/19/2016 and of the "guidelines addressed to the bodies managing school, company, hospital, social and community canteens, in order to prevent and reduce waste associated with food administration"- five policy alternatives aiming at solving the problem have emerged.
As said earlier, some solutions, including increasing the incisiveness of educational campaigns in schools and the creation of shared menus, are preventative
Other solutions are instead more decisive ex post: among these there is the recovery of food surpluses to allocate them to the families of the pupils themselves and to the most needy people or for animal or agricultural consumption.
The main idea is to act nationally through specific local projects that must be calibrated and adapted to the specific realities of both the territory and individual schools. Essential in this regard is the collaboration with all families, third sector realities and farms that, based on their availability and needs, want to take part in the initiatives.
6. Sources and Bibliography
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- “Spreco alimentare: nelle mense scolastiche un terzo del cibo va in pattumiera”; La Repubblica (2018) https://www.repubblica.it/cron...
- “Green School. Linee Guida spreco alimentare”; Green School (2019) 123.pdf (green-school.it)
- “Prevenire gli sprechi alimentari”; Progetto Pranzo sano a scuola” (2019) https://www.pranzosanoascuola....
- “Spreco alimentare: in Italia vale quasi 16 miliardi, e quasi 12 nelle nostre case. Presentati alla FAO stamane i dati Waste Watcher, in occasione della Giornata naz. di prevenzione dello spreco alimentare, in calendario domani, 5 febbraio”; Spreco Zero (2019) https://www.sprecozero.it/comu...
- “LEGGE 19 agosto 2016, n. 166”; https://www.gazzettaufficiale....
- “I punti principali della Legge Gadda”; Banco Alimentare (2016) https://www.bancoalimentare.it...
- “Linee di indirizzo rivolte agli enti gestori di mense scolastiche, aziendali, ospedaliere, sociali e di comunità, al fine di prevenire e ridurre lo spreco connesso alla somministrazione degli alimenti”; Ministero della Salute (2018) https://www.salute.gov.it/imgs...
- “La lotta allo spreco alimentare nelle mense italiane: le linee guida del Ministero della Salute”; CIS Consorzio Italia Servizi (2019) https://consorzioitaliaservizi.com/lotta-spreco-alimentare-mense-italiane.html#
Translated by: Simona Taravella