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9 | Basuma a y e al.
RE
RERE
RESEARCH
SEARCHSEARCH
SEARCH
PAPER
PAPERPAPER
PAPER
OPEN ACCESS
OPEN ACCESSOPEN ACCESS
OPEN ACCESS
Assessing ood was e p ac ices and challenges in ood se ice
ou le s: A s udy in Guwaha i locali y
P e ona Basuma a y
1
, Ba asa Rani Rabha
1
, Bani a
Lui el
1
, A isek Pu kayas ha
2
,
Ash eeka Islam
3
, Radali Dua ah
*1
1
Assam down own Uni e si y, Panikhai i, Guwaha i, Assam, India
2Assam Ins i u e o Managemen , Bo agaon, Guwaha i, Assam, India
3K ishi Vigyan Kend a, Nagaon, Assam, India
A icle published on June 03, 2025
Key wo ds:
Food was e, Food se ice ou le s, Sus ainabili y, Res au an
Abs ac
Food was e has been a global challenge wi h signi ican en i onmen al, economic and social implica ions.
Foodse ice ou le s, including es au an s, ca e e ias, and ho els, a e majo con ibu o s o his issue, wi h
app oxima ely 26% o ood was e o igina ing om his sec o . The p esen s udy aimed o examine ood
was e p ac ices and challenges wi hin he ood se ice ou le s o Guwaha i, a apidly u banizing me opolis
in No heas India. The su ey a ge ed Ganeshgu i, Chandma i, Six Mile, Bhangaga h and Panikhai i. The
objec i es included assessmen o he a e age daily quan i y o ood was ed and disposal me hods employed
by ood se ice ou le s o managing ood was e; iden i ica ion o he key easons behind ood was age o
ood se ice ou le s and e alua ion o he e ec i eness o s o age p ac ices; and explo ing he s a egies o
minimizing ood was e. Th ough su eying 75 ou le s ac oss i e loca ions in Guwaha i, i was ound ha a
majo i y o he ou le s (81.3%) dispose o was e in municipal collec ion bins, indica ing a minimal
engagemen in sus ainable p ac ices like compos ing. The a e age daily ood was e pe ou le was
app oxima ely 7.1 kg, wi h none o he es ablishmen s acking was e gene a ion. Cus ome le o e s
(68.8%) we e he p ima y eason o ood was age. Fac o s such as spoilage due o high humidi y and
o e p oduc ion also con ibu ed signi ican ly. S a egies o minimize ood was e highligh ed he
impo ance o aising cus ome awa eness (53.3%) and s a aining (25.3%). Mos ou le s elied on jus -
in- ime p epa a ion and daily buying s a egies o educe was e. This s udy emphasizes he need o
a ge ed in e en ions and sus ainable p ac ices in he oodse ice sec o in Guwaha i.
*
Co esponding Au ho : Radali Dua ah adali.dua a[email p o ec ed]
Jou nal o Biodi e si y and En i onmen al Sciences (JBES)
ISSN: 2220-6663 (P in ) 2222-3045 (Online)
Vol. 26, No. 6, p. 9-18, 2025
h p://www.innspub.ne
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10 | Basuma a y e al.
In oduc ion
Food loss and was e is a global p oblem wi h se e e
consequences o ood a ailabili y, economic
p ospe i y, and ecological balance. The FAO (Food
and Ag icul u e O ganiza ion) has es ima ed ha a
a io o app oxima ely one- hi d o ood p oduced
o human consump ion is was ed h oughou he
en i e supply chain globally (FAO, 2011). This is
p ima ily due o he p oduc ion o ood ha ends up
being was ed, and has shown signi ican impac s on
he en i onmen and i s esou ces. In 2013, FAO
de e mined ha he annual amoun o g eenhouse
gas emissions in land ills due o ood was e is almos
equi alen o he o al emissions o Cuba (app ox.
3.3 billion ons o CO
2
e/yea ) and ha ood was e
accoun s o he yea ly global wa e loss o oughly
250 Km
3
which is equi alen o h ee imes he
olume o Lake Gene a in Swi ze land (FAO, 2013;
Papa gy opoulou e al., 2014). The impac o ood
was e ex ends beyond he en i onmen and also
con ibu es o social injus ices, especially ega ding
global hunge . The ag icul u al p oduc ion eached
9.5 billion onnes in 2021 globally (FAO, 2022).
Howe e , 828 million con inue o expe ience hunge
on a egula basis which is 10% o he popula ion
(FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO, 2022). Food
se ice ou le s cons i u e one o he con ibu o s o
ood was e on a comme cial le el. A ound 931
million onnes o ood was e we e gene a ed in 2019,
26% o which came om ood se ice ou le s (Food
Was e Index Repo , 2021). Acco ding o WRAP
(Was e and Resou ces Ac ion P og amme), 75% o
ood was age p oduced in he ood se ice sec o was
pe ec ly edible be o e disposal, such as su plus
dishes o cus ome pla e le o e s (WRAP-Was e
and Resou ces Ac ion P og amme, 2013a).
Cus ome le o e s makeup he la ges po ion ood
was e in he sec o . App oxima ely one- hi d o ood
was e is gene a ed by cus ome s' pla e was e
(Papa gy opoulou e al., 2016). Beyond he
en i onmen al ou comes, ackling ood was e also
se es o add ess issues su ounding ood
a ailabili y and sel -su iciency, pa icula ly in
de eloping na ions (Sakaguchi e al., 2018;
Scialabba, 2010).
The Uni ed Na ions En i onmen P og amme’s ood
was age index epo e eals ha Indian households
was e app oxima ely 68.7 million onnes o ood e e y
yea . Globally, India anks second in e ms o ood
was age a he household le el, wi h only China
su passing i (Food Was e Index Repo , 2021).
Fu he mo e, India anks 111 h ou o he 125
coun ies in he Global Hunge Index (Global Hunge
Index, 2023). Resea ch on ood was e wi hin he
Indian ood was e has expanded conside ably in
ecen yea s. Acco ding o Dhi e al. (2020),
in es iga ions ha e been conduc ed in only eigh
de eloping na ions hus a , wi h India being one o
hem. Howe e , India's was e managemen
in as uc u e is poo in e ms o was e collec ion,
anspo a ion, ea men , and disposal. The p esen
was e managemen sys ems in India a e insu icien
o handle he amoun o was e gene a ed due o he
inc easing u ban popula ion (Kuma e al., 2017). The
Food Sa e y and S anda ds Au ho i y o India (FSSAI)
ini ia ed he Indian Food Sha ing Alliance (IFSA) in
2017 o p omo e ood dona ions and cu b u ban ood
was e. Howe e , he e a e no esul s o he impac on
was e educ ion ye (Aga wal e al., 2021). Hence
signi ican gaps pe sis e en in coun ies like India,
whe e s udies on ood was e ha e been ca ied ou
(Pa i osh e al., 2017; Mabaso and Hewson, 2018).
This su ey aims o add ess he gap in esea ch by
conduc ing a comp ehensi e assessmen o ood
was e p ac ices and challenges in ood se ice ou le s
wi hin he Guwaha i locali y. Guwaha i, he la ges
me opolis ci y in he No heas has wi nessed
signi ican de elopmen in ecen yea s wi h apid
u baniza ion and inc easing popula ion. Howe e ,
his de elopmen is also pa ing he way o he
incidence o inc eased ood was age in he ci y. As o
Decembe 2022, Guwaha i gene a ed 575 TPD solid
was es. App oxima ely, 85-90 % o was e is
anspo ed daily o he composed plan loca ed in
Bo agaon (Go e nmen o Assam epo , 2016).
Howe e , he quan i y o was e gene a ed by ood
se ice es ablishmen s has ye o be accu a ely
de e mined o ho oughly in es iga ed. By shedding
ligh on he challenges in Guwaha i's ood se ice
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11 | Basuma a y e al.
sec o , his s udy seeks o con ibu e o he
de elopmen o a ge ed in e en ions and educing
was e gene a ion in he locali y wi h he objec i es o
assessing he a e age daily quan i y o ood was ed and
disposal me hods employed by ood se ice ou le s o
managing ood was e; iden i ying he key easons
behind ood was age o ood se ice ou le s and
e alua ing he e ec i eness o s o age p ac ices; and
explo ing he s a egies o minimizing ood was e.
Ma e ials and me hods
The ma e ials and me hods used o in es iga e ood
was age in he ood se ice sec o o Guwaha i, India,
in ol ed a su ey conduc ed ac oss mul iple loca ions
wi hin he ci y. The s udy aimed o assess he ex en
o ood was e, iden i y con ibu ing ac o s, and
explo e po en ial mi iga ion s a egies.
Selec ion o s udy a ea
The su ey was conduc ed in Guwaha i. Guwaha i, a
p ominen i e ine po ci y nes led amids hills, is
one o India's as es -g owing u ban cen e s. I is he
la ges ci y in he Indian s a e o Assam, which also
s ands as he la ges me opolis in no heas e n India
(Deka and De i, 2017). Guwaha i is si ua ed in he
sub- opical clima e o Assam, which is cha ac e ized
by high humidi y and mode a e empe a u e all yea
ound (Desai e al., 2014). The su ey was conduc ed
in i e loca ions wi hin Guwaha i ci y, which a e,
Ganeshgu i, Bhangaga h, Chandma i, Six Mile, and
Panikhai i. A o al o 75 ou le s we e selec ed o he
s udy in Guwaha i. 15 ou le s we e su eyed in each o
he loca ions. The ou le s we e selec ed exclusi ely
based on in o ma ion p o ided by Google Maps,
wi hou conside ing any e iews o a ings (Fig. 1).
Fig. 1.
Su ey loca ion
De elopmen o ques ionnai e
The su ey, which cen e s on ood was age in ood
se ice sec o , was conduc ed u ilizing a s uc u ed
se o ques ionnai es. The ques ionnai e was
p ima ily de eloped, consis ing mainly o mul iple-
choice ques ions. The ques ions we e designed o ask
abou he gene al in o ma ion (name o ou le ,
cuisine, a e age cus ome s), assessmen o ood
was age (amoun o ood was ed pe day, es ima ion
o was e, excess ood handling), ac o s con ibu ing
o ood was age and s o age e ec i eness (p ima y
cause, s o age acili ies, main enance checks) and
s a egies o minimiza ion (dona ion, cus ome
communica ion ega ding ood was e). A p e es ing
was done on 10 andomly selec ed esponden in
di e en ou le s o eliabili y and alidi y by using
app op ia e me hod. A e p e es ing he ques ions
we e modi ied acco dingly.
Assessmen o ood se ice ou le s ega ding ood
was e
The su ey was ca ied ou be ween Feb ua y 2024
and Ap il 2024. The su ey was conduc ed h ough
in-pe son isi s o ou le s, whe ein ques ions
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12 | Basuma a y e al.
ega ding ood was age we e di ec ed o ei he he
manage o an employee. The ques ionnai e was
p esen ed o esponden s in a clea and
comp ehensible manne . Explana ions we e also
p o ided o ensu e accu a e unde s anding.
Addi ionally, esponden s we e in o med ha hei
esponses we e in ended solely o he p ojec
pu pose and would no be u ilized o any une hical
ac i i ies.
Ou o he o al o 90 ou le s a ge ed o he su ey,
83.33% (75 ou le s) exp essed willingness o
pa icipa e, while he emaining 16.66% (15 ou le s)
op ed no o pa icipa e, which esul ed in 15 ou le s
esponding om each loca ion. The eason o non-
pa icipa ion in he su ey was as due o limi ed
amilia i y o he employees ega ding he opic o
p o ide inpu . Addi ionally, some manage s
exp essed hesi a ion in comple ing he su ey o ms
in he absence o he ou le owne s.
Da a analysis
The esponses collec ed om he ques ionnai e we e
subsequen ly en e ed in o Google Fo ms. Following
his, he da a we e analyzed by using MS Excel.
Pe cen ages and pie cha s we e also gene a ed and
c ea ed o be e isibili y.
Resul s and discussion
A e age quan i y o ood was e pe day
The gene al in o ma ion sec ion o he ou le s ega ding
du a ion o business, cuisine o he es au an and
a e age no. o cus ome s in a day a e p esen ed in he
Table 1. The da a has been collec ed om compa a i ely
new es ablishmen (less han one yea o es ablishmen )
o old es ablishmen (mo e han 10 yea s). The ou le s
ca e o 10-30 cus ome s o mo e han 70 cus ome s pe
day. These ou le s o e a ie y o cuisines such as
Indian, Chinese, and Con inen al e c.
I was obse ed ha he majo i y o ou le s (34.7%)
was e be ween 1 o 5 kg o ood egula ly. 10-20 kg is
was ed by he nex 28% o ou le s. A e de ailed
calcula ion, i was ound ha app oxima ely 7.1 kg o
ood is was ed pe day wi hin he ood sec o . Howe e ,
ou o he 75 samples assessed, none o hem ack and
documen he amoun o was e gene a ed. Table 2 shows
ha none o hese es ablishmen s ollowed any weigh
accoun ing me hods. The igu es we e ob ained based on
isual es ima ion, and pla e coun s which con i m an
absence o da a-d i en was e managemen p ac ices. A
ecommenda ion o ou le s in Guwaha i is o
implemen manual ood was e accoun ing ools based
on pu chase and in en o y shee s, simila o p ac ices
ollowed in Be keley, Cali o nia. 24% o es au an s in
Be keley ack bo h he quan i y o ood pu chased
and he amoun o le o e s disca ded. By moni o ing
he ood en e ing he ki chen and wha is h own
away, es au an s can es ima e he egula was e
gene a ed and iden i y pa e ns in ood was e
(Sakaguchi e al., 2018).
Was e disposal p ac ices
In Guwaha i, 81.3% o oodse ice ou le s dispose o
was e in he dus bins o collec ion bins which a e
subsequen ly collec ed by he dumpe ucks p o ided
by Guwaha i Municipal Co po a ion. This p ac ice
aligns wi h he common ood was e ea men me hod
in de eloping coun ies, whe e dumping o land ills
accoun o o e 90% bu compos ing, a mo e
sus ainable app oach, is less p e alen (1-6%) (Sahoo
e al., 2024).
In con as , coun ies like Japan, Sou h Ko ea, and
Taiwan ha e implemen ed e ec i e ood was e
managemen s a egies, le e aging legisla i e laws o
p omo e he use o ood was e as animal eed (Wang
e al., 2021; Rahman e al., 2024). Howe e , in
de eloping coun ies, inadequa e sepa a ion and
collec ion o ood was e mixes wi h municipal solid
was e, ende ing i unsui able o animal eed o o he
uses (Sahoo e al., 2024).
Iden i ica ion o key easons o ood was age
The su ey indings e eal he majo eason o ood
was age in ood se ice ou le s is cus ome le o e s
(56%). This is in line wi h esea ch done in Chinese
es au an s which es ablished ha pla e le o e s as
he main d i e s o ood was e (Filimonau e al.,
2021; FAO, 2013).
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13 | Basuma a y e al.
Table 1. Gene al in o ma ion o he selec ed ou le s
Va iable
Ca ego y
No. o ou le s
Pe cen age
Du a ion o business
Less han a yea
34
45.3%
1
-
5 yea s
15
20%
5
-
10 yea s
13
17.3%
Mo e han 10 yea s
13
17.3%
Cuisine o
es au an
Indian
40
53.3%
Chinese
12
16%
Con inen al
2
2.6%
All
21
28%
A e age no. o cus ome s in a day
10
-
30
23
30.7%
30
-
50
19
25.3%
50
-
70
12
16%
Mo e han 70
21
28%
Table 2. Food was age, disposal p ac ices, easons behind ood was e and e ec i e s o age p ac ices o he ou le s
Va iable
Ca ego y
No. o ou le s
Pe cen age
Food was e disposal me hod
Compos / animal eed
9
12%
Dona ion
5
6.7%
Go . dumpe uck
61
81.3%
O he s
1
1.3%
Me hod o es ima ion o ood was age
Pla e coun
11
14.7%
Visual Es ima ion
65
86.7%
Weighing disca ded i ems
0
0%
Es ima ed a e age daily ood was e
Less han 1 kg
10
13.3%
1
-
5 kg
26
34.7%
5
-
10 kg
18
24%
10
-
20 kg
21
28%
Pe iod in ol ing highes amoun o
ood was age
Janua y
-
Ap il
13
17.3%
May
-
Augus
28
37.3%
Sep embe
-
Decembe
2
2.7%
No di e ence
32
42.7%
Handling o excess ood was e
S o e i o la e use
21
28%
Adjus po ion size
19
25.3%
Disca d i
28
37.3%
Compos /animal eed
7
9.3%
Majo easons o ood was age
Cus ome le o e
42
56%
O e buying
6
8%
O e
-
p oduc ion
13
17.3%
Spoilage
14
18.7%
S o age o aw ing edien s
D y, cool place
22
29.3%
Re ige a o s/F eeze s
51
68%
Sealed
con aine
2
2.7%
O he s
0
0
S o age o p epa ed dishes
Bain
-
Ma ie/Food wa me s
18
24%
Co e ed
con aine
50
66.7%
Sepa a e
a ea
7
9.3%
O he s
0
0
F equency o main enance checks on
e ige a ion and s o age equipmen
Mon hly
21
28%
Once in a
yea
2
2.7%
Once in h ee mon hs
13
17.3%
Weekly
39
52%
I ems ha con ibu e o high ood
was age
Ce eals and
pulses
20
26.7%
Mea and
milk
13
17.3%
F ui s and
ege ables
23
30.7%
P ocessed p oduc s
19
25.3%
To ackle his issue, India can d aw inspi a ion om
Sou h Ko ea's inno a i e app oach o ood was e
managemen by implemen ing a sys em whe e
consume s a e cha ged o ood was e collec ed by
local au ho i ies and o was e gene a ed in bu e s
(FAO, 2013).
Spoilage and o e p oduc ion a e he o he
con ibu o s o ood was e. Table 2 depic s ha in
18.7% o ou le s, spoilage has been iden i ied as a
con ibu ing ac o o ood was age. The high
humidi y le els in Guwaha i play a pi o al ole in
accele a ing ood spoilage. While newe ou le s
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14 | Basuma a y e al.
epo ed no di e ence, olde and long- unning
ou le s epo ed ha he majo i y o he was e occu s
om May o Augus , as demons a ed in Table 2.
Du ing summe , Guwaha i’s empe a u e anges om
24.0°C o 35.3°C. The combina ion o high humidi y
and hea leads o apid bac e ial g ow h which
signi ican ly accele a es ood spoilage (Singh and
Ande son, 2004; Ami e al., 2017).
O e -p oduc ion s ood as a mino eason o ood
was age (17.3%). I is common o es au an
employees o ely on hei expe ience o es ima e
daily dish sales. A s udy by Bha ucha (2018) indica es
ha 75% o es au an s p epa e 10%-20% mo e ood
as a sa e y ma gin o accommoda e unexpec ed
c owds. In e iews wi h es au an owne s and
manage s e eal ha hey p edic daily needs and
p epa e only he necessa y ood. The e o e,
signi ican o e p oduc ion is uncommon which aligns
wi h he p esen s udy. While his me hod is o en
e ec i e, he e a e occasions when his me hod
esul s in he p epa a ion o excess ood due o
miscalcula ions.
Fu he , ega ding he con ibu o s o ood was age
ac oss a ious ca ego ies, he indings indica e ha
he con ibu ion o ood was age is ela i ely uni o m
ac oss hese ca ego ies. F ui s and Vege ables op he
lis , con ibu ing o he highes was age (30.7%)
ollowed by ce eals and pulses (26.7%), p ocessed
p oduc s like noodles and lou (25.3%) and mea and
milk p oduc s (17.3%).
Handling o excess ood
Ano he eason o ood was e is connec ed wi h he
conce ning and was e ul p ac ice o he disca ding o
pe ec ly edible ood as admi ed by 37.3% o he
ou le s. While some ou le s do make an e o o sa e
excess ood o la e use (28%) o educe po ion sizes
o p e en unnecessa y was e (25.3%), only a me e
9.3% engage in esponsible p ac ices such as
compos ing o epu posing ood as animal eed.
This is in con as o pas esea ch done by Bha ucha
in Mumbai whe e 43% o he pa icipa ing
es au an s immedia ely e ige a e hei su plus
ood. I also men ioned how mos es au an s
ollowed a policy whe e hey dis ibu ed he su plus
ood among hei s a (Bha ucha, 2018). While some
es au an s in Guwaha i ollow his p ac ice, he
exis ence o a clea policy on he ma e is unhea d o .
E ec i eness o s o age acili ies
O he han he humidi y, he lack o p ope s o age
acili ies con ibu es o his spoilage. The majo i y o
he es ablishmen s use e ige a o s (68%) o s o e
pe ishable i ems like mea and ish. Howe e , due o
lack o necessi y o space cons ain s, mos o hem
s o e o he i ems openly in d y and cool places o a
sepa a e a ea.
Addi ionally, while 66.7% o es ablishmen s u ilize
co e ed con aine s o s o e cooked ood, only a
meage 24% epo ed u ilizing ad anced s o age
equipmen such as Bain-Ma ies, ood wa me s and
eeze s (Table 2). The eason o no u ilizing
ad anced s o age echnology in many small
es au an s is i s expense. As a esul , mos small
es au an s ely on a daily buying s a egy, op ing no
o in es in ad anced echnology o s o age. Ins ead,
hey ypically s o e aw p oduc s such as ege ables in
d y, cool places. While his app oach may seem
simplis ic, i se es as a cos -sa ing me hod o hese
es ablishmen s.
The e is a a o able esul ega ding he equency
o main enance checks on s o age acili ies as
demons a ed in Table 2 as speci ically, 52% o
esponden s epo ed conduc ing main enance
checks on a weekly basis. Howe e , e en a e
p ope cooking, he e migh exis haza ds du ing
ood s o age. S o ing cooled oods in la ge
con aine s (e.g., 5-gallon bucke s, s ock po s, soup
ke les, all pans), e ige a o empe a u es highe
han 4.4°C, lack o su icien ack space o shallow
ood pans in e ige a o s can lead o p omo ing
oodbo ne illness and educed shel -li e o p oduc s
esul ing spoilage (Ma ynoga and Chapman,
2012). Hence, sa e y and quali y should be ensu ed
be o e se ing he ood.
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15 | Basuma a y e al.
Table 3. S a egies o minimiza ion sec ion o he ou le s
Va iable
Ca ego y
No. o ou le s
Pe cen age
Excess ood dona ion
Yes
26
34.7%
No
49
65.3%
Mode o communica ion wi h
cus ome s abou ood was e educ ion
Signs and
pos e s
7
9.3%
Social
media
13
17.3%
Bo h
8
10.6%
None
47
62.6%
S a egy o con ibu ing o lowe ed
ood was e
Collabo a ion wi h shel e s and NGOs
4
5.3%
Cus ome awa eness
40
53.3%
La es s o age
equipmen
12
16%
S a T aining
19
25.3%
Likelihood o adop ing a ‘ze o
-
was e’
goal
Somewha likely
20
26.7%
Ve y likely
42
56%
Neu al
12
16%
No likely
1
1.3%
S a egies o minimize was e
I has been obse ed ha he ac ions o cus ome s play
a c ucial ole in minimizing was e ac oss he en i e
ood supply chain. 53.3% o esponden s belie e ha
aising cus ome awa eness could signi ican ly
con ibu e o educing ood was e (Fig. 2).
Fig. 2.
S a egies o minimize was e
Addi ionally, 25.3% highligh ed he necessi y o s a
aining. T aining p og ams aimed a ki chen s a o
imp o e skills needed o minimize was e h oughou
he p oduc ion p ocess is i al. This includes
s a egies such as educing o e p oduc ion and
o e buying, as well as implemen ing p ac ices o
eusing le o e s c ea i ely.
When que ied abou he s a egies o a oid ood
was e, he majo i y o he es au an s ollowed he
me hod o jus -in- ime p epa a ion, i.e., ood is
cooked o assembled when cus ome s o de .
Mo eo e , mos small es au an s ely on a daily
buying s a egy o pu chasing ing edien s and aw
oods, op ing no o in es in ad anced echnology o
s o age. Ins ead, hey ypically s o e aw p oduc s
such as ege ables in d y, cool places. While his
app oach may seem simplis ic, i se es as a cos -
sa ing me hod o hese es ablishmen s.
Ano he s a egy ha Guwaha i can ollow is
ins alling o ganic was e con e e s. This app oach is
exempli ied by a es au an in Mumbai ha
ans o ms ki chen le o e s in o aluable manu e o
i s ho el ga den. Addi ionally, wo o he
es ablishmen s ha e in es ed in was e ecycling and
p ocessing uni s, ha nessing biogas and ene gy
(Bha ucha, 2018). Res au an s in Guwaha i can d aw
inspi a ion om his and implemen simila
ini ia i es.
Cha i able ini ia i es
F om he Table 3, i was obse ed ha 62.6% o
ou le s admi ed o ei he no engaging o comple ely
a oiding communica ion ega ding ood was e
educ ion. To p io i ize cus ome sa is ac ion and
main ain poli eness, all o de s a e p epa ed wi hou
communica ing abou any excess le o e s. This issue
can be add essed by pos ing signs and pos e s. These
isual cues se e as gen le eminde s and main ain a
poli e en i onmen wi hin he ou le as well.
App oxima ely 34.7%, ha e shown a willingness o
add ess he issue o ood was e h ough cha i able
means. These ou le s ha e ei he dona ed excess ood
o shel e s, dis ibu ed i o begga s, s ee animals o
con ibu ed o cha i able o ganiza ions. O e 5.3%
(Table 3) also belie ed collabo a ing wi h NGOs and
shel e s could signi ican ly educe was e and ensu e
J. Bio. &
En . Sci.
20
25
16 | Basuma a y e al.
ha excess ood is edi ec ed o hose in need a he
han being disca ded. Howe e , despi e his belie ,
none o hese ou le s ha e es ablished collabo a ions
wi h shel e s o NGOs. Many es ablishmen s pe cei e
he p ocess o dona ing excess ood as an addi ional
hassle, ci ing conce ns abou he challenges in ol ed.
Conclusion
Was age o ood in ood se ice ou le s emains a
conce n and neglec ed opic ha needs u gen
in e en ions o educe he o e all coun y’s solid
was e. The indings o he s udy e ealed he was e
p ac ices in he ood se ice ou le s o Guwaha i. The
p ima y was e disposal p ac ice obse ed in Guwaha i
in ol es disca ding ood was e in o dus bins, which
a e subsequen ly collec ed by municipal ucks
(GMC). This me hod, while common in de eloping
coun ies, o en leads o signi ican en i onmen al
impac s due o he eliance on land ills. A shi
owa ds mo e sus ainable p ac ices, such as
compos ing, could mi iga e hese impac s. By
applying an assessmen app oach, he amoun o
was age was quan i ied, and subsequen ly, he esul s
ob ained we e alida ed wi hin a sample o
Guwaha i’s ood se ice ou le s. I was obse ed ha
on a e age, ood se ice ou le s in Guwaha i was e
app oxima ely 7.1 kg o ood pe day. A key challenge
was assessing he accu a e amoun o ood was e
p oduced because o he lack o was e acking and
weigh accoun ing me hods. The p esen da a
sugges s ha cus ome le o e s play a majo ole in
he amoun s o ood disca ded in ou le s. Inc easing
cus ome awa eness abou ood was e and p o iding
s a aining can play an essen ial ole in minimizing
was e. Dona ions and cha i able ini ia i es can be
encou aged mo e o ensu e ha he excess ood
eaches hose in need ins ead o being disca ded.
Mos o he su eyed ou le s did no collabo a e wi h
any o ganiza ions o dona e excess ood because i
was seen as an ex a hassle. Ad oca ing o inc eased
go e nmen al suppo and policy implemen a ion can
add ess ood was e a a sys emic le el. O e all, he
indings s ess he u gency o imp o ed was e
managemen s a egies wi h echnological solu ions,
beha io al changes, and awa eness campaigns o
os e sus ainabili y in he ood se ice sec o .
Acknowledgemen
Au ho s deeply exp ess hei hea el hanks o
Assam down own Uni e si y and he P og amme o
Food Nu i ion and Die e ics, o allowing us o wo k
on he p ojec .
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