Food Waste and Circular Economy: Challenges and Opportunities—Second Edition

Dear Colleagues,

The existing linear model of food production and consumption contributes significantly to food waste and the degradation of natural resources such as land, water, and soil. Recently, there has been a growing global movement to develop circular economy (CE) frameworks across various sectors, including food.

The circular economy is a systems-based approach that aims to eliminate waste and minimize the use of virgin resources by keeping materials and products in use for as long as possible through sustainable practices such as reuse, repair, refurbishing, and recycling. In the context of the food system, a true circular economy cannot be achieved merely by introducing recycling or recovery operations at the end of the supply chain. Instead, a holistic and transformative approach is urgently needed across the entire food value chain—from production, processing, distribution, and consumption to waste management.

This Special Issue aims to promote research on food sustainability and the circular economy, exploring new directions and innovative solutions. We invite manuscripts that critically examine how digital technologies, advanced scientific innovations, and systemic changes can enable circularity in the food system. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Redesigning food systems based on circular economy principles, such as regenerative agriculture, closed-loop production, and sustainable sourcing.
• Valorisation, recovery, and reuse of food waste and by-products through innovative technologies and business models.
• Life cycle assessment-driven strategies for minimizing food waste and maximizing resource efficiency across the entire food value chain.
• The role of AI, digital infrastructure, data-driven decision-making, and Industry 4.0 technologies in enabling the circular economy in the food sector.

By exploring these topics, we aim to contribute to the development of a truly sustainable and circular food system that addresses the pressing challenges of food waste, resource depletion, and environmental degradation.

Dr. Taghi Miri
Dr. Helen Onyeaka
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• sustainability
• food waste
• circular economy
• innovation

• Food Waste and Circular Economy: Challenges and Opportunities in Sustainability (10 articles)