Food Waste Across the Supply Chain: A U.S. Perspective on a Global Problem
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.62300/n4fbpp09Keywords:
Food Waste, Food Loss, Supply Chain, Sustainability, Food Security, Consumer Behavior, Policy, Composting, Animal Feed, Environmental FootprintAbstract
This edited volume examines the scale, causes, and consequences of food loss and waste across the U.S. supply chain, and presents strategies and case studies for reduction, recovery, and recycling. Contributions cover global trends and environmental footprints, consumer behavior, industry practices, food rescue and composting, animal feed pathways, and policy and legal frameworks—concluding with recommendations to support the national goal of a 50% reduction in food waste by 2030.Downloads
References
# Complete Reference List in Alphabetical Order
Abeliotis, K., K. Lasaridi, and C. Chroni. 2014. Attitudes and behavior of Greek
Alexandratos, N. and J. Bruinsma. 2012. World agriculture towards 2030/2050: The 2012 revision. Working paper No. 12-03. FAO, Rome, Italy.
Alltech. 2014. 2013 Alltech Global Feed Summary.
Anonymous. 2005. Solid Waste Management Loan to The Bahamas from IDB.
Anonymous. Agricultural Statistics. 2012. National Agricultural Statistics
Bahamas Environment, S. a. T. C. B. 2002. Bahamas Environmental Handbook.
Bahamas Ministry of Finance. 2011. Labour Market Information Newsletter.
Baker, D., J. Fear, and R. Denniss. 2009. What a waste: An analysis of
Ball, S., and M.A. Taleb. 2011. Benchmarking waste disposal in the Egyptian
Bamberg, S., and G. Möser. 2007. Twenty years after Hines, Hungerford, and
Bloom, J. 2010. American Wasteland: How America Throws Away Nearly Half
Bon Appétit Management Company. 2014. Reducing Food Waste.
Boserup, E. 1964. The Conditions of Agricultural Growth. Aldine Press,
Brehm, S.S., and J.W. Brehm. 1981. Psychological Reactance: A Theory of
Brillat-Savarin, J.A. 1854. The Physiology of Taste, or Transcendental
Broad Leib, E., and D. Gunders. 2013. The Dating Game: How Confusing Food
Broad Leib, E., J. Ferro, A. Nielson, G. Nosek, and J. Qu. 2013. The Dating
Broad Leib, E., J. Ferro, A. Nielsen, G. Nosek, and J. Qu. 2013. The Dating
Brook Lyndhurst. 2007. Food Behaviour Consumer Research: Quantitative
Brown, S. 2014. A better warm. BioCycle 55(8):85.
Buchan, K.C. 2000. The Bahamas. Marine Pollut. Bull. 41(1):94-111.
Bunn, D., G.W. Feenstra, L. Lynch, and R. Sommer. 1990. Consumer
Burcham, S., G. Saba, and K. Sing. 2011. Runk Dining Hall Waste Audit.
Business for Social Responsibility (BSR). 2013. Analysis of U.S. food waste content/uploads/2013/06/FWRA_BSR_Tier2_FINAL.pdf.
Business for Social Responsibility (BSR). 2014. Analysis of U.S. food waste content/uploads/2014/11/FWRA_BSR_Tier3_FINAL.pdf.
Buzby, J. 2014. Overview of Food Loss in the United States. The Last Food
Buzby, J.C. 2010. Nanotechnology for food applications: More questions than
Buzby, J.C., and J. Hyman. 2012. Total and per capita value of food loss in the
Buzby, J.C., H.F. Wells, and J. Aulakh. 2014. Food Loss—Questions About the
Buzby, J.C., H.F. Wells, and J. Bentley. 2013. ERS's Food Loss Data Help
Buzby, J.C., H.F. Wells, and J. Hyman. 2014. The Estimated Amount, Value,
Buzby, J.C., H.F. Wells, and J. Hyman. 2014. The estimated amount, value and
Buzby, J.C., J. Hyman, H. Stewart, and H.F. Wells. 2011. The value of retail- Consum. Aff. 45(3):492-515. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-
Canning, P., A. Charles, S. Huang, K.R. Polenske, and A. Waters. 2010. Energy
Capper, J.I., L. Berger, M.M. Brashears, and H.H. Jensen. 2013. Animal Feed Agriculture Towards 2015. Council for Agricultural Science and
Chagnon, N.A. 2013. Yanomamo, Legacy Sixth Edition. Wadsworth Publ.,
Chen, M.C., A. Ruijs, and J. Wesseler. 2005. Solid waste management on small
Christian, D. 2011. Maps of Time. University of California Press, Los Angeles,
Chung, S. 2008. Using plastic bag waste to assess the reliability of self-reported waste disposal data. Waste Manage. 28(12):2574-2584.
Clark, N. 2015. The business of community composting. Biocycle 56(1):32.
Clean Plates at State. 2013. Clean Plates at State Food Waste Audit. Michigan
Coleman-Jensen, A., C. Gregory, and A. Singh. 2014. Household Food Security in the United States in 2013. Economic Research Report Number 173.
Coleman-Jensen, A., M. Nord, M. Andrews, and S. Carlson. 2012. Household food security in the United States in 2011. ERR-141. U.S. Dept. of
Cooney, S. 2012. The economics of recycling in Hawaii. Hawaii Business:58.
Crawford, J. 2012. What if the world's soil runs out? World Economic Forum, Dec. 14, 2012: http://world.time.com/2012/12/14/what-if-the-worlds-
Crawshaw, R. 2001. Co-product Feeds: Animal Feeds from the Food and Drink
Cuéllar, A.D., and M.E. Webber. 2010. Wasted food, wasted energy: The Technol. 44:6464-6469. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es100310d.
David, S. 2012. Table scraps to farm food; Johns Island man sets up business to
Demographia world urban areas, 2015, 11th annual edition:
Dou, Z. 2014. Conclusions and the Road Ahead. The Last Food Mile
Economic Research Service (ERS). 2015a. Food Availability (LAFA) data
Economic Research Service (ERS). 2015b. Loss-Adjusted Food Availability
Economic Research Service (ERS). 2015c. Loss-Adjusted Food Availability
Ehrlich, P.A. 1968. The Population Bomb. Buccaneer Books, Cutchogue, NY.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 2014. Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks, 1990-2012. EPA 430-R-14-003.
EPA. 2012. Food: Too Good to Waste Pilot Toolkit. EPA's Sustainable
EPA. 2012. Municipal solid waste generation, recycling, and disposal in the United States: Facts and figures for 2012.
EPA. 2014. The Food Recovery Hierarchy.
Eshel, G., A. Shepon, T. Makov, and R. Milo. 2014. Land, irrigation water, production in the United States. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. 111(33):11996-
Eshel, G., A. Shepon, T. Makov, and R. Milo. 2015. Partitioning United States'
Eswaran, H., R. Lal, and P.F. Reich. 2001. Land degradation: an overview. In:
European Commission. 2015. Food Waste.
Evans, D. 2011. Blaming the consumer – once again: the social and material
FAO. 2014a. Definitional Framework of Food Loss. ion_and_Scope_2014.pdf.
FAO. 2014b. Global Initiative on Food Loss and Waste Reduction.
FAO. 2015. Fisheries and Aquaculture Department. Rome. Updated 23 June
FAO, IFAD and WFP. 2014. The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2014. FAO, Rome. http://www.fao.org/3/a-i4037e.pdf.
FDA. 2015. Did you know that a store can sell food past the expiration date? http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/Transparency/Basics/ucm210073.htm.
Feeding America. 2012. Feeding America Urges Swift Vote on Extended Tax
Ferdman, R.A. 2015. Seattle is now publicly shaming people for putting food in
Firdaus, G., and A. Ahmad. 2010. Management of urban solid waste pollution in
Fischetti, M. 2014. World Population Will Soar Higher Than Predicted. Sci.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2011. Food
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2015. World Fertilizer Trends and Outlook to 2018. Food and Agriculture
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2016. Save
Food Waste Reduction Alliance (FWRA). 2014. Best Practices & Emerging
Frank, J.N. 2013. Fish and Shellfish – US – October 2013, research report.
Frayer, L. 2015. To Cut Food Waste, Spain's Solidarity Fridge Supplies Endless
Freedman, M.R., and C. Brochado. 2009. Reducing portion size reduces food intake and plate waste. Obesity 18(9):1864-1866.
Freidberg, S. 2010. Fresh: A Perishable History. Harvard University Press,
GfK. 2012. Knowledge Panel Design Summary.
Gidarakos, E., G. Havas, and P. Ntzamilis. 2006. Municipal solid waste
Giorgi, S. 2013. Understanding out of Home Consumer Food Waste, Final
Golan, E., and J.C. Buzby. 2015. Innovating to meet the challenge of food
Goldstein, N. 2013. Community composting in New York City. BioCycle
Goldstein, N. 2013. Trimming costs with composting. BioCycle 54(1):22.
Graham-Rowe, E., D.C. Jessop, and P. Sparks. 2014. Identifying motivations Recy. 84:15-23. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2013.12.005.
Grizzetti, B., U. Pretato, L. Lassaletta, G. Billen, and J. Garnier. 2013. The
Gunders, D. 2012. Wasted: How America is Losing up to 40 Percent of its Food
Hall, K.D., J. Guo, M. Dore, and C.C. Chow. 2009. The progressive increase of
Hall, K.D., J. Guo, M. Dore, and C.C. Chow. 2009. The progressive increase in
Halloran, A., J. Clement, N. Kornum, C. Bucatariu, and J. Magid. 2014.
Hanner, K. 2014. Feeding America: Rescuing Wasted Food to Feed People. The
Hanssen, O.J., and H. Møller. 2013. Food Wastage in Norway 2013 Status and Trends 2009-2013. FAO and Østfoldforskning Sustainable Innovation.
Heileman, S., and L.J. Walling. 2005. Caribbean Environmental Outlook.
Herlihy, D. 1997. The Black Death and the Transformation of the West. Harvard
Hernández, M.G., and R.R. Martín-Cejas. 2005. Incentives towards sustainable
Hojlund, F. 1983. The Maussolleion sacrifice. Am. J. Archaeol. 87(2):145-152.
Holden, A. 2008. Environment and Tourism (second ed.). Routledge, New
Icaro Consulting. 2013. Consumer Attitudes to Food Waste and Food Packaging
Intermarché. 2014. Inglorious Fruits and Vegetables.
Johnston, M.W. 2013. Getting the public tuned in to food waste reduction.
Jörissen, J., C. Priefer, and K. Bräutigam. 2015. Food waste generation at
Kansa, S.W. and S. Campbell. 2004. Feasting with the dead? A ritual bone deposit at Domuztepe, south eastern Turkey (c. 5550 cal BC). pp. 2-13
Kollmuss, A., and J. Agyeman. 2002. Mind the gap: Why do people act
Kowitt, B. 2010. Inside the Secret World of Trader Joe's. Fortune, August 23.
Kraushaar, A. 2014. Perimeter of the Store US June 2014. Mintel
Krossovitch, A., S. Katsaros, and N. Goldstein. 2014. Found: Composters taking
Kummu, M., H. de Moel, M. Porkka, S. Siebert, O. Varis, and P.J. Ward. 2012.
Kurlansky, M. 1998. Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World.
Laudan, R. 2013. Cuisine and Empire, Cooking in World History. University of
Lebersorger, S., and F. Schneider. 2011. Discussion on the methodology for Manage. 31(9-10):1924-1933.
Lee, P., S. Osborn, and P. Whitehead, P. 2015. Reducing Food Waste by
Lee, R.B. and I. DeVore (eds.). 1968. Man the Hunter. Aldine Press, Chicago,
Linsey. 2014. Estimated use of water in the United States in 2010: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1405.
Liu, J., J. Lundqvist, J. Weinberg, and J. Gustafsson. 2013. Food losses and Technol. 47:10137-10144. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es401426b.
Livi-Bacci, M. 1991. Population and Nutrition, An Essay on European
Lo, J., and A. Jacobson. 2011. Human rights from field to fork: Improving labor
MacNaull, S. 2012. Plethora of porkers: Swimming with swine: Meeting four
Macgregor, C.A. 1989. Directory of Feeds and Feed Ingredients. W.D. Hoard
Malthus, R. 1798. An Essay on the Principle of Population. republished as First Essay on Population, 1798. Macmillan Publ., London, UK.
Marmot, M. 2005. Social determinants of health inequalities. Lancet
Marra, F. 2013. Fighting Food Loss and Food Waste in Japan (Unpublished
Matsumoto, D., S.H. Yoo, and J. Fontaine. 2008. Mapping expressive Psychol. 39(1):55-74. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0022022107311854.
McGuire, V.L. 2013. Water-level and storage changes in the High Plains aquifer, predevelopment to 2011 and 2009-11. U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5291.
Mekonnen, M.M. and A.Y. Hoekstra. 2011. The green, blue and grey water
Merrow, K., P. Penzien, and T. Dubats. 2012. Exploring Food Waste Reduction http://wmich.edu/sites/default/files/attachments/ENVS 4100 Final
MIT Mission Biodiversity, 2015 (fisheries):
Montgomery, D.R. 2007. Soil erosion and agricultural sustainability. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. 104(33):13268-13272.
Montoux, H. Reisinger, P. Dolley, S. Ogilvie, and G. Morton. 2010. Commission Directorate C, Technical Report – 2010-54.
Moskowitz, H.R., and A. Gofman. 2007. Selling Blue Elephants: How to Make
NASS). 2013. Census of Agriculture 2013 Farm and Ranch Irrigation
NASS). 2015a. 2012 Census of Agriculture Survey Program Crops
NASS). 2015b. 2012 Census of Agriculture Survey Program
National Research Council. 2001. Nutrient Requirements of Dairy Cattle.
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). 2012. Left-Out – An Investigation
Nederhof, A.J. 1985. Methods of coping with social desirability bias: A review.
Neff, R.A., M.L. Spiker, and P.L. Truant. 2015. Wasted food: U.S. consumers'
Newport, F. 2014. Few Americans Want More Gov't Regulation of Business. Gallup, September 15. http://www.gallup.com/poll/176015/few-
Nijs, V.R., M.G. Dekimpe, J.E. Steenkamps, and D.M. Hanssens. 2001. The
Nobelprize.org. 1970. Norman Borlaug – Biographical.
Northeast Regional Certified Crop Advisor. 2010. Cornell University.
NSW. 2010. Food Waste Avoidance Benchmark Study 2009. New South Wales
Oyserman, D., H.M. Coon, and M. Kemmelmeier. 2002. Rethinking
Parizeau, K., M. von Massow, and R. Martin. 2015. Household-level dynamics
Parizeau, K., M.V. Massow, and R. Martin. 2015. Household-level dynamics of
Parry, A., K. James, and S. LeRoux. 2015. Strategies to Achieve Economic and
Pascaud, L. 2014. A food waste reduction movement gathers steam. Forbes, July 24. http://www.forbes.com/sites/techonomy/2014/07/24/a-food-
Penn Facilities and Real Estate Services. 2014. Waste Management and
Penn Green Campus Partnership. 2014. Frequently Asked Questions. University
Platt, B., N. Goldstein, C. Coker, and S. Brown. 2014. State of composting in
Polonsky, M.J., A. Vocino, S.L. Grau, R. Garma, and A.S. Ferdous. 2012. The
Pottier, J. 1999. Anthropology of Food, the Social Dynamics of Food Security.
Quested, T. 2014. Household Food Waste: Quantification, Understanding and
Quested, T. and H. Johnson. 2009. Household food and drink waste in the UK,
Quested, T., and P. Luzecka. 2014. Household Food and Drink Waste: A People
Quested, T., R. Ingle, and A. Parry. 2013a. Household Food and Drink Waste in
Quested, T.E., E. Marsh, D. Stunell, and A.D. Parry. 2013b. Spaghetti soup: The
Rajan, A., R. Steinberg, and R. Steinberg. 1992. Dynamic pricing and ordering
Reuters. 2013. Amazon Plans Major Move Into Grocery Business. CNBC June
Robelia, B., and T. Murphy. 2012. What do people know about key
Saphire, D. 1998. Getting an 'A' in Lunch: Smart Strategies to Reduce Waste in
Sater, W.F. 2007. Andean Tragedy: Fighting the War of the Pacific, 1879–1884.
Schwartz, B. 2004. The Paradox of Choice: Why Less is More. Ecco Press, New
Seattle Public Utilites, and Bagshaw, S., Councilmember. 2014. Seattle
Segrè, A., and M. Pessato, translated by C. Giordano. 2014. Waste Watcher Knowledge for Expo Rapporto 2014 Executive Summary.
SENES Consultants, Ltd. 2005. National Environmental Management Action
Shiklomanov, I. 1993. World fresh water resources. in: P.H. Gleick (editor)
Siegrist, C. 2014. Smooth transition to food waste composting. BioCycle
Smil, V. 2000. Enriching the Earth: Fritz Haber, Carl Bosch, and the
Sonntag, V. 2014. Food Too Good to Waste Pre-engagement Survey
Spooner, B. 1972. Population Growth: Anthropological Implications. MIT
Spooner, B. 2015. Globalization via World Urbanization. pp. 1-21 in:
Stan, V., A. Virsta, E.M. Dusa, and A.M. Glavan. 2009. Waste recycling and
Stefan, V., E. van Herpen, A.A. Tudoran, and L. Lähteenmäki. 2013. Avoiding
Steinhart, J.S., and C.E. Steinhart. 1974. Energy use in the U.S. food system. Science 184(4134):307-316.
Stuart, T. 2009. Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal. W.W. Norton and
Sullivan-Sealey, K. 2004. Large-scale ecological impacts of development on
Sullivan-Sealey, K., and J. Smith. 2014. Recycling for small island tourism
Sullivan-Sealey, K., and N. Cushion. 2009. Efforts, resources and costs required Tour. 17(3):375-395. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09669580802275994.
Sullivan-Sealey, K., V.N. McDonough, and K.S. Lunz. 2014. Coastal impact
Sustainability Victoria. 2011. Food Waste Avoidance Studies 2010. State
Sustainable America. 2013. Food/Fuel Public Poll: Key Findings.
Swenson, and M. Bodell. 2015. Quantifying renewable groundwater stress with GRACE. Water Resour. Res. 51(7):5217-5238.
T.P. Labuza, G. Prince, H.S. Thesmar, and F. Yiannis. 2014. Food Sci. F. 13(4):745-769. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1541-
The College Sustainability Report Card. 2011. University of Pennsylvania.
Tsiros, M., C.M. Heilman. 2005. The effect of expiration dates and perceived Market. 69(2):114-129. http://dx.doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.69.2.114.60762.
Tversky, A., and D. Kahneman. 1974. Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases. Science 185(4157):1124-1131.
U.S. Census Bureau. 2013. Current Population Survey, 2012 Annual Social and
U.S. Census Bureau. 2014. Current Population Survey, 2014 Annual Social and
U.S. Census Bureau. 2015. American Community Survey, 2013 Population
U.S. Department of Agriculture. 2015. Food Waste Challenge: Frequently
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2012. Food: Too Good to Waste Pilot,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2014. Municipal Solid Waste Tables and Figures for 2012. February 2014.
UNEP Yearbook. 2010. Phosphorus and food production:
United Nations News Centre. 2013. World population projected to reach 9.6 billion by 2050. United Nations, New York, NY.
US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Organic Program. 2015a.
US Department of Agriculture (USDA). 2015b. The National List of Allowed
US EPA. 2014. Municipal Solid Waste Generation, Recycling, and Disposal in the United States: Tables and Figures for 2012.
USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS). 2015. Food Safety
USEPA. 2015. Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: Facts and Figures 2013.
USEPA Landfill Methane Outreach Program (USEPA LMOP). 2015.
Van Haaren, R., N. Themelis, and N. Goldstein. 2010. The state of garbage in
Van Kauwenbergh, S.J. 2014. Global Phosphate Rock Reserves and Resources, 2014 Agricultural Outlook Forum February 20-21, 2014. http://www.usda.gov/oce/forum/past_speeches/2014_Speeches/Kauwe
Vangarde, S.J., and M.J. Woodburn. 1987. Food discard practices of
Venkat, K. 2012. The climate change and economic impacts of food waste in the
Virtanen. 2014. The role of household food waste in comparing Sci. 27:277-292. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/pts.2032.
Wada, Y., and M.F.P. Bierkens. 2014. Sustainability of global water use: past reconstruction and future projections. Environ. Res. Lett. 9(10):104033.
Wansink, B., and K.A. Johnson. 2015. Adults only: Why don't children belong
Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP). 2014. Food Waste Reduction.
Weisenberger, C. 2014. More Consumers Choosing 'Grocerants' over
Wells-Moultrie, S. 2006. The National Environmental Policy for the
Westendorf, M.L., and R.O. Myer. 2004. Feeding Food Wastes to Swine.
Westendorf, M.L., T. Schuler, and E.W. Zirkle. 1999. Nutritional quality of
Wethington, and W. Schulze. 2012. From Coke to Coors: A field study
Wheat, J.B., H.E. Malde, and E.B. Leopold. 1972. The Olsen-Chubbuck site: a
Wikimedia Commons. 2014. Global Values of Water Resources and Water Use.
Wikipedia. 2015. List of largest cities through history.
Williams, H., and F. Wikström. 2011. Environmental impact of packaging and
Williams, H., F. Wikström, T. Otterbring, M. Löfgren, and A. Gustafsson. 2012.
Wouters, C. 2007. Informalization: Manners and Emotions Since 1890. Sage
WRAP. 2007. Understanding Food Waste Research Summary. Waste &
WRAP. 2015. Our Progress. Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP),
Yepsen, R. 2012. Residential food waste collection in the U.S. BioCycle
2011. Global food losses and food waste: Extent, causes and
2011. Integrated models for solid waste management in tourism
2013. The impact of tourism on municipal solid waste generation: The case of Menorca Island (Spain). Waste Manage. 33(12):2589-2593.
2014. Growing Local Fertility: A Guide to Community Composting.
2015a. Feed Grains: Yearbook Tables.
2015b. Food Availability (Per Capita) Data System Loss-Adjusted
2015c. Oil Crops Yearbook.
2015d. Wheat Data.
Heikintalo, A. Reinikainen, and L. Jalkanen. 2012. Influence of socio- Stud. 36:183-191. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1470-6431.2011.01080.x.
Heikintalo, A. Reinikainen, and L. Jalkanen. 2012. Influence of socio- Stud. 36(2):183-191. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1470-
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
License Terms for CC Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0:
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
License Terms Statement:
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material
Under the following conditions:
- Attribution — you must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made
- NonCommercial — you may not use the material for commercial purposes
No additional restrictions — you may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
