Curbing household food waste and associated climate change impacts in an ageing society
Shigetomi Y., Ishigami A., Long Y., Chapman A.
Nature Communications, 15:8987
Urban Farm DB summary
Demonstrates that per-capita household food waste in Japan rises with the age of the household head, reaching roughly three times higher for those 70+ than for those under 30, with correspondingly large differences in food-waste-related greenhouse gas emissions. It highlights the need for age-targeted food-loss reduction strategies in an ageing society.
Key points
- 1Per capita household food waste in Japan increases with the age of the household head (from 16.6 kg/year for those in their 20s and younger to 46.0 kg/year for those in their 70s and older in 2015).
- 2The increase in food waste among older households is primarily attributed to their propensity to purchase more fruits and vegetables.
- 3Life cycle greenhouse gas emissions related to food waste vary by age bracket, with the largest being 90.1 kg-CO2 eq/year for those in their 60s and the smallest being 39.2 kg-CO2 eq/year for those in their 20s and younger.
- 4Food waste and associated emissions are expected to decline between 2020 and 2040 due to future demographic changes imparted by an aging, shrinking population.
- 5Specific measures focused on demographic shifts are crucial for suppressing food waste and associated emissions to achieve sustainable development goals.
Extracted facts
5 factsOnly numbers and their conditions are stored, as structured data — never the source's own sentences. Metric and condition names stay in English, as coded.
- 16.6 kg/year
per capita food waste(household head under 30)
Social- region
- JP
- setting
- household
- study design
- life-cycle-assessment-with-economic-statistics
- years
- 2015
- age bracket
- 20s-and-younger
- 46 kg/year↑ Increase
per capita food waste(household head 70 plus)
SocialControl: households headed by people in their 20s and younger- region
- JP
- setting
- household
- study design
- life-cycle-assessment-with-economic-statistics
- years
- 2015
- age bracket
- 70s-and-older
- 90.1 kg_co2eq/year
food waste life cycle ghg(household head 60s)
Climate- region
- JP
- setting
- household
- study design
- life-cycle-assessment
- scope
- raw-materials-to-retail
- age bracket
- 60s
- 39.2 kg_co2eq/year
food waste life cycle ghg(household head under 30)
Climate- region
- JP
- setting
- household
- study design
- life-cycle-assessment
- scope
- raw-materials-to-retail
- age bracket
- 20s-and-younger
- declining after 2020↓ Decrease
projected food waste and emissions(japanese households)
ClimateControl: 2020 level- region
- JP
- setting
- household
- study design
- demographic-projection
- years
- 2020-2040
Direction of conclusions
Each author conclusion is recorded only as a coded direction per topic. Read the original for the conclusion itself.
- Carbon / GHGSupports
- Policy and governanceSupports
Abstract and stored text
OpenAlexAbstract We explored the intricate quantitative structure of household food waste and their corresponding life cycle greenhouse gas emissions from raw materials to retail utilizing a combination of household- and food-related economic statistics and life cycle assessment in Japan. Given Japan’s status as a nation heavily impacted by an aging population, this study estimates these indicators for the six age brackets of Japanese households, showing that per capita food waste increases as the age of the household head increases (from 16.6 for the 20’s and younger group to 46.0 kg/year for 70’s and older in 2015) primarily attributed to the propensity of older households purchase of more fruits and vegetables. Further, the largest life cycle greenhouse gases related to food waste was 90.1 kg-CO 2 eq/year for those in their 60’s while the smallest was 39.2 kg-CO 2 eq/year for 20’s and younger. Furthermore, food waste and associated emissions are expected to decline due to future demographic changes imparted by an aging, shrinking population after 2020 until 2040. Specific measures focused on demographic shifts are crucial for Japan and other countries with similar dietary patterns and demographics to achieve related sustainable development goals through suppressing food waste and associated emissions under new dietary regimes.
Why it matters for urban farming
This study reveals that older households generate more per capita food waste, particularly fruits and vegetables. Citizen-driven urban farms can contribute to reducing food waste by providing fresh, locally grown produce that may be consumed more efficiently. Urban farms can also serve as educational platforms for all age groups on food management and sustainable consumption. For older citizens, participating in urban farming could foster a deeper understanding of food management and value, thereby reducing waste. It also offers a direct connection to food sources, potentially mitigating over-purchasing of perishable items.