Life Cycle Assessments of Takeaway Food and Beverage Packaging: The Role of Consumer Behavior
Abstract
:1. Introduction
- Regulations and policies: Government policies and regulations can have a significant impact on consumer behavior, for example, recycling behavior [21,22]. A compulsory deposit systems could be an example for that, as for other packaging it leads to an increasing return rate [14,23], which therefore would decrease the amount of littered packaging;
- Culture: Cultural norms and values can also influence consumer behavior and waste management practices [24,25]. For example, in some societies, there is a greater cultural value placed on reducing waste and protecting the environment, which can encourage consumers to adopt more sustainable practices [26];
- Technologies: Technological advances can play a role in encouraging or discouraging littering and waste separation behavior [27,28]. For example, the lack of access to appropriate waste management infrastructure can discourage consumers from properly disposing of waste, leading to littering and other environmental problems [23].
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Research Questions
- How was the use phase modeled, and was consumer behavior anticipated?
- Was (the possibility of) littering included in the LCAs?
- How was the EoL modeled, and was consumer behavior anticipated?
2.2. Literature Review
3. Results
3.1. Literature Review—Overview of Analyzed LCA Studies
3.2. Consideration of Consumer Behavior
3.2.1. Use Phase
3.2.2. Littering
3.2.3. End-of-Life
Study Number and Source | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
[11] | [38] | [39] | [12] | [40] | [41] | [42] | [13] | [43] | [1] | [44] | [45] | [46] | [52] | [47] | [48] | [49] | [50] | [51] | |
Investigated Packaging | |||||||||||||||||||
Cups | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||
Food container | X | X | X | ||||||||||||||||
Single-use | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||
Reusable | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||
Use–Phase | |||||||||||||||||||
Consumer behavior (mentioned) | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||||||||
Break-even reuse rate | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||||||
Reuse rate scenario or sensitivity analysis | X | X | X | ||||||||||||||||
Handwashing | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||||||||
Dishwashing | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||
Sensitivity analysis washing | X | X | X | ||||||||||||||||
Data source washing | |||||||||||||||||||
Assumptions or unclear | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||||||
One study | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||||||||||||
Multiple source | X | X | X | X | |||||||||||||||
Littering (mentioned) | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||||||||||
End-of-Life | |||||||||||||||||||
Landfilling | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||||
Incineration | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||
Recycling | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||
Composting | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||||||||||||
Data Source EoL | |||||||||||||||||||
Assumptions | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||
Statistics | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||||
Sensitivity or scenario analysis | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X |
3.2.4. Correlation Analysis
4. Discussion and Limitations
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Study Number | Title | Reference |
---|---|---|
1 | Environmental Evaluation of Single-Use and Reusable Cups | [11] |
2 | Environmental impacts of disposable cups with special focus on the effect of material choices and end of life | [38] |
3 | Life cycle assessment and eco-efficiency analysis of drinking cups used at public events | [39] |
4 | Multiple data sets and modelling choices in a comparative LCA of disposable beverage cups | [12] |
5 | Reusable vs. disposable cups revisited: guidance in life cycle comparisons addressing scenario, model, and parameter uncertainties for the US consumer | [40] |
6 | Facility arrangements and the environmental performance of disposable and reusable cups | [41] |
7 | Choice of materials for takeaway beverage cups towards a circular economy | [42] |
8 | How small daily choices play a huge role in climate change: the disposable paper cup environmental bane | [13] |
9 | Improving the environmental sustainability of reusable food containers in Europe | [43] |
10 | Environmental impacts of takeaway food containers | [1] |
11 | Cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment of single-use cups made from PLA, PP, and PET | [44] |
12 | Assessment of the environmental break-even point for deposit return systems through an LCA analysis of single-use and reusable cups | [45] |
Study Number | Title | Reference |
---|---|---|
13 | Single use Cups or Reusable (coffee) Drinking Systems: An Environmental Comparison | [46] |
14 | Sustainability at a Brazilian University: Developing Environmentally Sustainable Practices and a Life Cycle Assessment Case Study | [52] |
15 | Potential Climate Benefits of Reusable Packaging in Food Delivery Services: A Chinese Case Study | [47] |
Study Number | Title | Reference |
---|---|---|
16 | Reusable Coffee Cups Life Cycle Assessment and Benchmark | [48] |
17 | A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of 12oz CupClub Cup and Lid | [49] |
18 | Case Study Ceramic Cup vs. Paper Cup | [50] |
19 | Taking a Closer Look at Paper Cups for Coffee | [51] |
Multiple Sources for Data Washing | Littering (Mentioned) | EoL Options Included | EoL Sensitivity or Scenario Analysis Included | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Consumer Behavior (mentioned) | 0.408 | 0.782 | −0.309 | −0.321 |
t-Value | 1.845 | 5.181 | −1.338 | −1.400 |
p-Value | 0.082 | 0.000 | 0.199 | 0.180 |
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Caspers, J.; Süßbauer, E.; Coroama, V.C.; Finkbeiner, M. Life Cycle Assessments of Takeaway Food and Beverage Packaging: The Role of Consumer Behavior. Sustainability 2023, 15, 4315. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054315
Caspers J, Süßbauer E, Coroama VC, Finkbeiner M. Life Cycle Assessments of Takeaway Food and Beverage Packaging: The Role of Consumer Behavior. Sustainability. 2023; 15(5):4315. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054315
Chicago/Turabian StyleCaspers, Justus, Elisabeth Süßbauer, Vlad Constantin Coroama, and Matthias Finkbeiner. 2023. "Life Cycle Assessments of Takeaway Food and Beverage Packaging: The Role of Consumer Behavior" Sustainability 15, no. 5: 4315. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054315
APA StyleCaspers, J., Süßbauer, E., Coroama, V. C., & Finkbeiner, M. (2023). Life Cycle Assessments of Takeaway Food and Beverage Packaging: The Role of Consumer Behavior. Sustainability, 15(5), 4315. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054315