FACTORS AFFECTING FOOD LOSS AND WASTE IN PALESTINIAN DAIRY INDUSTRIES
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Date
2025-02-18
Authors
Breaka, Ghada
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Publisher
An-Najah National University
Abstract
Background: Food Loss and Waste (FLW) has serious implications for the environment, human health, food security, and resource efficiency worldwide. Eliminating and minimizing FLW may positively improve food security and the environment.
Objective: To investigate and analyze the factors affecting the FLW in the Palestinian dairy industries.
Methods: The study utilized the FAO methodology developed in 2016, titled "Food Loss Analysis: Causes and Solutions, Case Studies in the Small-scale Agriculture and Fisheries Subsectors" with some customization to fit the local context.
Results: Overall, findings revealed that approximately 103.81 tons (0.77% of total production) of dairy products (fresh milk, yogurt, and buttermilk) were lost during the different processing stages. Moreover, about 209.31 tons of the finished product (1.56%) are wasted annually during the transportation and market stage. Large factories had the highest contribution in quantity of FLW compared to other smaller factories. Micro and very small (Mi-VS) factories had the highest FL rate (1.37%). Meanwhile, small and medium (S-M) factories had the lowest FL and FW rates (0.11% and 0.22% respectively). The high FL in Mi-VS small factories is attributed to the use of conventional processing methods. Meanwhile, S-M factories utilize more advanced processing machines and produce lower quantities than large factories, which significantly reduces the FL rate. Large factories had about a 1.63% FW rate of total production. In contrast, Mi-VS factories had around 1.20%. The main causes of dairy FW were expired products, temperature abuse at retail and mishandling-transportation. Across all dairy factory categories, the findings on the factors affecting dairy FLW demonstrated that strong competition and the need to maintain market share are the most significant risk factors. This is coupled with the short shelf life of dairy products and governmental restrictions on their shelf life.
Conclusion: More than 313.12 tons of dairy products are lost or wasted annually. The size of the factory, the type of product, and the technology applied during processing, in addition to the limited shelf life and the high competition, had a high impact on the quantity of FLW in local dairy industries.