Food waste has been considered a global problem due to its adverse impacts on food security, the environment, and the economy; hence needs urgent attention and action. Its generation is expected to increase as the world population grows rapidly, leading to more global waste. This study sought the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak on the 1-week operation of selected casual dining restaurants in urban (Ampang, Kuala Lumpur) and suburban areas (Kota Bharu, Kelantan and Jasin, Melaka) of Peninsular Malaysia, as the local community adjusted to life with COVID-19. The food waste in this study was classified into three categories: preparation loss, serving loss, and customer’s plate waste. Our material flow analysis revealed that the highest food loss at these locations came from preparation loss (51.37%), followed by serving loss (30.95%), and preparation loss (17.8%). Meanwhile, the total average electricity consumption and its carbon footprint for Ampang were 127 kWh and 13.87 kgCO 2 e, Kota Bharu 269.8 kWh and 29.47 kgCO 2 e, and Jasin 142.2 kWh and 15.54 kgCO 2 e, respectively. As for water, Ampang exhibited 22.93 m 3 total average consumption and 7.91 kgCO 2 e greenhouse emissions from this source, Jasin consuming 17.11 m 3 of water and releasing 5.88 kgCO 2 e of carbon footprint, while Kota Bharu emitted 20.21 kgCO 2 e of greenhouse gases from its 58.71 m 3 water consumption. Our findings indicate a major ‘food leak’ at the preparation stage, from which the waste could be utilised as livestock feed, and that electricity consumption is a greater carbon emitter than water consumption, suggesting a need for improvement to the kitchen practices and equipment.

Food waste has been considered a global problem due to its adverse impacts on food security, the environment and the economy; hence needs urgent attention and action. Its generation is still increasing despite the COVID-19 outbreak, which may lead to more waste globally. This study sought the possible environmental impacts of one week of operation of selected casual dining restaurants in urban (Ampang, Kuala Lumpur) and suburban areas (Kota Bharu, Kelantan and Jasin, Melaka) in Peninsular Malaysia during the pandemic. The food waste in this study was classified into three categories: preparation loss, serving loss and customer’s plate waste. Our Material Flow Analysis revealed that the highest food loss in those locations came from preparation loss (51.37%), followed by serving loss (30.95%) and preparation loss (17.8%). Meanwhile, the total average electricity consumption and its carbon footprint for Ampang were 127kWh and 13.87kgCO2e, Kota Bharu 269.8kWh and 29.47kgCO2e, and Jasin 142.2kWh and 15.54kgCO2e, respectively. As for water, Ampang exhibited 22.93m3 total average consumption and 7.91kgCO2e greenhouse emissions from this source, Jasin 17.11m3 and 5.88kgCO2e, and 58.71m3, and Kota Bharu 20.21kgCO2e. Our findings indicate that casual dining restaurants in a suburban area may be a greater carbon emitter than those in the urban area, despite being less developed. Besides, the biggest contributor to food waste generation in this type of restaurant is preparation loss.