Environmental Impact

Elsevier, Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, Volume 103, February 2022
Transportation is a basic social need, but most trips are done by private vehicles, which is not environmentally sustainable with growing urban populations. Micromobility (e.g., shared bikes) represents a significant opportunity to replace short private vehicles trips (0–3 miles) and reduce transportation sector emissions. This paper uses Seattle as a case study and estimates that up to 18% of short car trips could be replaced by micromobility.
Substitution of beef with alternative proteins is one practical trend taken by industry and consumers to reduce the negative impact of convenience products on the environment. Numerous products based on plant, insect and fungi proteins compete to replace beef burgers in an environmentally friendly and healthy way. At the same time, there is a lack of studies which assess different options from environmental impact perspective but also with consideration of production scales, recipes, nutritional values, and sensory properties.
Elsevier, Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Volume 50, June 2021
Climate change has affected diverse spheres and its impact is being witnessed worldwide. Soil, the basis of human sustenance, is both directly and indirectly affected by climate change. Soil erosion, vegetation degradation and soil salinisation are becoming prevalent, causing a threat to future food security. Saline soils are found mainly in North and Central Asia, Africa and South America. Various factors such as excess irrigation and poor drainage, groundwater salinity, sea level rise and intrusion, irregular rainfall contribute to the process of soil salinisation.
Elsevier, Trends in Food Science and Technology, Volume 111, May 2021
Background: Coffee is of the most traded commodities in the world and its market has grown regularly over the last 150 years. During production and processing of coffee beans many by-products are generated such as skin, pulp, mucilage, parchment, silverskin, and immature /defective coffee beans. Around 50% of coffee fruit is discard and can contaminate the environment. Scope and approach: The purpose of this review is to raise potential applications for coffee by-products in topical formulations. Besides, to present the main bioactive compounds responsible for their biological activity.
This short communication describes the climate change impacts of using cellulose, and more precisely cellulosic fiber-based materials, in food packaging, representing current and emerging industrial state of the art technology, without specific reference to current scientific advances. First, the different types of cellulosic fiber-based packaging materials, which can be used to replace fossil-based packaging materials, are presented for flexible and rigid applications. The focus is on technological solutions with packaging properties that enable the protection of commonly sold food products.
This study presents a critical review analysis of greenery systems research through a bibliometric approach. The purpose of this study is to provide a holistic overview by (i) the development of the field; (ii) the research trends and the main issues; and (iii) the main gaps still observed in the literature. Therefore, this paper provides the past, the present and the potential future of this scientific topic and serves as an orientation and guide for researchers who aim for a better understanding of the main progress and gaps.
Elsevier, Trends in Food Science and Technology, Volume 108, February 2021
The food industry is responsible for significant impacts on the environment, such as climate change, water depletion and land use. Although these environmental impacts, along with socio-economic ramifications, are generally difficult to monitor and control, there is a significant interest from the food industry to assess the sustainability of their activities and wider supply chains. However, new food products are being continuously designed and manufactured, for instance complex foods made with a number of ingredients such as sandwiches, prepared salads and ready meals.
Produced water (PW) is the main waste stream generated from oil and gas extraction. Nowadays, half of the global PW volume is managed through environmentally controversial and expensive disposal practices, such as re-injection through deep wells. In dry areas such as in the Arabian Peninsula, PW could be reused to irrigate crops, creating environmental, economic and social value. However, the quality of most PWs remains challenging as their high salinity, sodicity and alkalinity can degrade soil fertility and crop yield.
Agricultural pesticides represent a significant class of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) to which non-target organisms around the world are constantly exposed. Laboratory studies have found strong evidence showing the endocrine-disruptive potential of these pesticides at environmentally relevant exposure levels. Since the field of endocrine disruption continues to grow in richness and complexity, this review aims to provide an update on the effects of two agricultural pesticides that act as EDCs: atrazine and endosulfan.
Elsevier, Trends in Food Science and Technology, Volume 104, October 2020
Background: The environmental impact of meat consumption requires immediate action. Cultured meat—which is emerging through technologies to grow meat ex vivo—has exciting potential to offset the burden of livestock agriculture by providing an alternative method to sustainably produce meat without requiring individuals to become vegetarian. However, consumer uptake of cultured meat may be challenged by negative public perceptions.

Pages