An Analysis of Food Waste in Czech Households—A Contribution to the International Reporting Effort
Food waste originating in households in the Czech Republic is an important but unknown issue. Due to the country’s membership among the most developed economies (European Union, OECD) and its commitments towards UN Sustainable Development Goals, the government must, inter alia, significantly reduce...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-04-01
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| Series: | Foods |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/10/4/875 |
| _version_ | 1797537484686491648 |
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| author | Petra Nováková Tomáš Hák Svatava Janoušková |
| author_facet | Petra Nováková Tomáš Hák Svatava Janoušková |
| author_sort | Petra Nováková |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Food waste originating in households in the Czech Republic is an important but unknown issue. Due to the country’s membership among the most developed economies (European Union, OECD) and its commitments towards UN Sustainable Development Goals, the government must, inter alia, significantly reduce household food waste. However, reliable data and indicators based on internationally agreed approaches and methods have been missing so far. This article brings original results from a survey comprising over 400 Czech households based on the kitchen diaries method showing that, on average, surveyed households discarded 2.6 kg (1.1 kg per capita) weekly. After extrapolation, the total food waste was estimated to be 135.7 kg per household or 57.1 kg per capita annually. Half of the total food waste from surveyed households was thrown into municipal bins for mixed waste. Despite a relatively low total food waste stream, its disposal needs substantial improvement to meet national and international regulations as well as sustainability criteria. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T12:16:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-cc8efc03df8e4ca1aed8ba7c9771b518 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2304-8158 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T12:16:48Z |
| publishDate | 2021-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Foods |
| spelling | doaj.art-cc8efc03df8e4ca1aed8ba7c9771b5182023-11-21T15:50:47ZengMDPI AGFoods2304-81582021-04-0110487510.3390/foods10040875An Analysis of Food Waste in Czech Households—A Contribution to the International Reporting EffortPetra Nováková0Tomáš Hák1Svatava Janoušková2Faculty of Humanities, Charles University, 110 00 Prague, Czech RepublicFaculty of Humanities, Charles University, 110 00 Prague, Czech RepublicEnvironment Centre, Charles University, 110 00 Prague, Czech RepublicFood waste originating in households in the Czech Republic is an important but unknown issue. Due to the country’s membership among the most developed economies (European Union, OECD) and its commitments towards UN Sustainable Development Goals, the government must, inter alia, significantly reduce household food waste. However, reliable data and indicators based on internationally agreed approaches and methods have been missing so far. This article brings original results from a survey comprising over 400 Czech households based on the kitchen diaries method showing that, on average, surveyed households discarded 2.6 kg (1.1 kg per capita) weekly. After extrapolation, the total food waste was estimated to be 135.7 kg per household or 57.1 kg per capita annually. Half of the total food waste from surveyed households was thrown into municipal bins for mixed waste. Despite a relatively low total food waste stream, its disposal needs substantial improvement to meet national and international regulations as well as sustainability criteria.https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/10/4/875food wastehousehold wastewaste monitoringkitchen diariessustainable developmentCzech Republic |
| spellingShingle | Petra Nováková Tomáš Hák Svatava Janoušková An Analysis of Food Waste in Czech Households—A Contribution to the International Reporting Effort Foods food waste household waste waste monitoring kitchen diaries sustainable development Czech Republic |
| title | An Analysis of Food Waste in Czech Households—A Contribution to the International Reporting Effort |
| title_full | An Analysis of Food Waste in Czech Households—A Contribution to the International Reporting Effort |
| title_fullStr | An Analysis of Food Waste in Czech Households—A Contribution to the International Reporting Effort |
| title_full_unstemmed | An Analysis of Food Waste in Czech Households—A Contribution to the International Reporting Effort |
| title_short | An Analysis of Food Waste in Czech Households—A Contribution to the International Reporting Effort |
| title_sort | analysis of food waste in czech households a contribution to the international reporting effort |
| topic | food waste household waste waste monitoring kitchen diaries sustainable development Czech Republic |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/10/4/875 |
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