Food waste posing a serious threat to sustainability in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – A systematic review

Abstract

Worldwide, food waste is one of the prime issues threatening food security and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is not an exception. With 427 kg of food wasted per capita per year, the country ranks among the top food wasters. Ironically, the Kingdom has limited arable lands and scarce water resources to support mass-scale agriculture and to feed its increasing population, KSA relies heavily on imports and subsidized food to meet needs. Yet, food is wasted at restaurants, caterers, cafeterias and, especially, by households such that food waste is the single-largest component of the landfills. The review article is based on the grey and scientific literature published in the English and Arabic languages on the issue of food waste in Saudi Arabia. Information sources like Web of knowledge, online resources and the databases available through the King Saud University, Saudi Arabia were accessed and used to collect information on food waste, its social, cultural, economic and environmental impacts and related topics. Since food items and groceries are abundantly available to all living in KSA and they are highly subsidized, the residents take food for granted. According to a recent survey, about 78% of food purchased in KSA is discarded each week in order to make room for new groceries. The factors responsible for food waste include: lack of awareness; and insufficient and inappropriate planning when shopping. Food waste in restaurants, celebrations, social events and occasions are enormous. Waste is common in festivals and special events where the customs is to provide more food than required. There is a need to change society’s food culture, particularly among the women and the youth, as they are largest segment of the society and the prime food wasters. The analysis of the factors responsible for food waste, identified in this article suggests a “Stop Wasting Food” campaign should be launched. It is also recommended to determine and activate the role of extension education to reduce food waste in the KSA through vibrant capacity building programs for youth and women, in particular, and society in general.

Food Waste in the Countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council: A Systematic Review

“…These findings regarding the relation between Ramadan and food wastage behavior are corroborated by the results obtained in other NENA countries e.g., Algeria [53], Egypt [54], Morocco [56], and Tunisia [57]. Food wastage is also high during social events in the Gulf countries [61,113,117]; Abiad and Meho [45] put that "during social events, such as weddings, births, and deaths, food is usually prepared on a large scale, in many cases turning into lavish shows flaunting wealth and social status" (p. 7).…”

“…The initial search yielded 55 documents. A further 19 articles were added from some recent reviews on food waste in the NENA region [45,46,61,62]. The number of documents left after removing duplicates was 67.…”

“…Baig et al [46] argue that the "key contributors to waste include culture, food valuation, policy and industry factors, and awareness" (p. 1633) in Saudi Arabia. Likewise, Baig et al [61] suggest that "the factors responsible for food waste include: lack of awareness; insufficient and inappropriate planning when shopping. Food waste in restaurants, celebrations, social events and occasions is enormous.…”

“…This might be because most of food wastage in the rich GCC countries takes place at the consumer level. Indeed, Baig et al [61] suggest that food is mainly wasted at the consumer level in Saudi Arabia; "food is wasted at restaurants, caterers, cafeterias and, especially, by households such that food waste is the single-largest component of the landfills" (p. 1743). Moreover, even at the consumption level, studies on behavioral and attitudinal aspects relating to food wastage are lacking; the only exception is Aktas et al [98] who use TPB (theory of planned behavior) to investigate food waste behavior of Qatari consumers.…”

“…Baig et al [46] point out that the KSA might have one of the highest rates of food waste in the world and put that "estimates of annual per capita waste of food ranged from 165 kg to 511 kg" (p. 1633). Meanwhile, referring to data from the Food Sustainability Index [130], Baig et al [61] argue that "with 427 kg of food wasted per capita per year, the country ranks among the top food wasters" (p. 1743). Shahzad et al [110] highlight that FW is the largest stream in the municipal solid waste (MSW) in Makkah (Saudi Arabia) and represents slightly more than a half of MSW in the city.…”