Household food waste accounts for the most significant part of total food waste in economically developed countries. In recent times, this issue has gained recognition in the international research community and policy making. In light of the Sustainable Development Goals of FAO, mandatory reporting on food waste has been integrated into European legislation, as a basis of preventive programs. The paper presents the results of research that aimed to quantify the food waste generated by Hungarian households. Research methodology was based on the EU compliant FUSIONS recommendations. In total, 165 households provided reliable data with detailed waste logs. Households were supported by kitchen scales, measuring glasses, and a manual. Based on the extrapolation of the week-long measurement, the average food waste was estimated to be 65.49 kg per capita annually, of which the avoidable part represented 48.81%. Within the avoidable part, meals, bakery products, fresh fruits and vegetables, and dairy products are accountable for 88% of the mass. This study was a replication of the first Hungarian household food waste measurement conducted in 2016 with the same methodology. Between the two periods, a 4% decrease was observed. The findings, for instance the dominant share of meals in food waste, should be put in focus during preventive campaigns. National level food waste measurement studies using the FUSIONS methodology should be fostered by policy makers to establish the foundations of effective governmental interventions and allow for the international benchmarking of preventive actions.

Food-related consumer decisions have an impact on the environment. However, trending patterns of sustainable consumption often pose a challenge for food-safety authorities: these initiatives may unintentionally compromise food safety. The objective of this review is to support public agencies in the integration of sustainability issues into food-safety risk communication schemes. Environmentally conscious but risky behaviors aimed at the reduction of food waste and plastic packaging were chosen for discussion and scrutinized based on expert opinions. Those expert opinions clearly indicated that a significant part of environmentally conscious behaviors, such as removing mold, eating expired perishable food, overstoring leftovers, avoiding single-use plastic packaging even when cross-contamination is a threat, and using reusable bags without cleaning for a long time, often contribute to food-safety risks. Short, easy-to-remember messages were collected for each recognized risky behavior; they concentrated on prevention or providing an alternative that was still environmentally sensible but kept food-safety risks low (such as planning ahead to avoid leftovers, freezing leftovers in time, and sanitizing reusable bags). The identified challenges and solutions might encourage authorities to rethink their risk-communication practices and integrate a sustainability aspect in them.

No abstract