Improving waste management strategies in the food sector: case studies from Spain, Tunisia and Hong Kong García-García, Guillermo Parra-López, Carlos Rodríguez Pleguezuelo, Carmen Rocío Sayadi, Samir Food waste Horticulture Seafood Municipal waste Circular economy Funding for open access publishing: Universidad de Granada/CBUA. Part of this work has been carried out in the project “REmanufacture the food supply chain by testing INNovative solutions for zero inorganic WASTE (REINWASTE)”, integrated in the Interreg Med programme and co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund under grant agreement 3300. Guillermo Garcia-Garcia acknowledges the Grant ‘Juan de la Cierva Incorporación’ funded by MCIN/AEI/https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 and “ESF Investing in your future”, and the Grant ‘Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Postdoctoral Fellowship’ with Grant agreement ID: 101052284. Funding for open access: Universidad de Granada / CBUA. Appropriate waste generation and management is becoming increasingly important in making food systems more sustainable. It is, therefore, imperative to both reduce waste generation and sustainably manage the waste that cannot be reduced. However, this is challenging due to the heterogeneity of waste materials, the high economic costs of optimizing food systems and the low awareness of the issue in some societies. This article analyzes three case studies that explore improvements in waste management in the food sector in Europe, Africa and Asia. The case studies focus on a horticultural cooperative in Spain, a seafood company in Tunisia and municipal waste management in Hong Kong, highlighting different challenges and approaches. Key factors for horticultural waste management include a consistent regulatory framework, appropriate management systems and waste traceability. The article also highlights the potential for valorisation of waste products, such as blue crab by-products, which can be used to obtain polysaccharides, proteins, lipids, antioxidants, flavonoids, vitamins and minerals. A shift from landfill to anaerobic digestion is also recommended for a more sustainable waste management. By identifying and quantifying waste streams and problematic waste types, alternative solutions can be developed to improve the sustainability of the global food supply chain. 2024-07-24T10:14:31Z 2024-07-24T10:14:31Z 2024-04-30 journal article Garcia-Garcia, G., Parra-López, C., Siddiqui, M.A. et al. Improving waste management strategies in the food sector: case studies from Spain, Tunisia and Hong Kong. J Mater Cycles Waste Manag 26, 2265–2277 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10163-024-01965-z https://hdl.handle.net/10481/93443 10.1007/s10163-024-01965-z eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ open access Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional Springer Nature