food wastage in malaysia essay

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Food waste in malaysia: trends, current practices and key challenges.

INTRODUCTION

Wasted food is a considerable component of the world’s food system challenges. Food waste can be described as all edible food materials produced for human consumption but left uneaten, either lost or discarded throughout the food supply chain, from farm to fork. It is organic waste discharged from various sources including food processing plants, and domestic/commercial kitchens, cafeterias and restaurants (Chen et al .,  2017). Other terms have been used inter- changeably, such as food loss, biowaste, and kitchen waste (Thyberg & Tonjes, 2016). According to FAO  (2015), approximately  one-third of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted globally. That amount is about 1.3 billion tonnes per year.  Food is lost or wasted throughout the supply chain, from initial production down to final household consumption.

Food waste is recognized to be a huge problem worldwide, and is particularly severe in developed countries. For examples, in the United States, food waste and losses at the retail and consumer levels have amounted to 188 kg per capita per year, or an overall value of $165.6 billion. Among Europe and the North America, the food waste was estimated as high as 280 – 300 kg per capita per year (Garrone, Melacini, & Perego, 2014).  In Southeast Asia, it is estimated that 33% of food is wasted in the region (Yang et al ., 2016). It was reported that in average a household in Malaysia throw away around 0.5-0.8kg  uneaten food per day (Chien Bong et al ., 2016). This problem is expected to increase in a few years while corresponding to economic development, population growth, and urbanization as Malaysia’s population is expected to reach 33.4 million by year 2020 and 37.4 million by year 2030. Figure 1 shows global food wastage in consumption phase (retailers and consumers) according to the regions reported by FAO (2015).

Food waste negatively affects the availability of food to others. When over one third of globally produced food is wasted, ironically, there are 868 million people who still suffer by starvation and malnutrition. All citizen must keep in mind that the food waste issue is not only associated with social, economic, environmental aspects, but it is also an ethical problem, that needs to be seriously considered (Thi, Lin, & Kumar, 2016). Thus, reducing food waste has attracted a growing public attention at the international, regional, and national levels (Liu et al ., 2016). Governments, research institutions, producers, distributors, retailers and consumers are now seriously concerned about how to tackle this issue.

Fig. 1. Per capita food losses and waste, at consumption and pre-consumptions stages, in different regions

Source: FAO, 2015

Food Waste Trends in Malaysia

It is hard to find any scholarly article regarding food waste statistics in Malaysia since most published papers would consider food waste as part of the Municipal solid waste (MSW). Hence, the term MSW is used where it is applicable throughout this paper.    

Malaysia is well known for its great food. We are proud of the diversity and tastiness of our food – all things that we Malaysians are quick to brag about. Unfortunately our unique food culture is also turning into a culture of waste. Statistics from Solid Waste Corporation of Malaysia (SWCorp) showed that in 2015 the food waste in Malaysia reached 15,000 tonnes daily, including 3,000 tonnes that was still fit for consumption and should not have been discarded (Malaysia Kini, 2016). The study also found that a household of five spent an average of 210 USD a month on food and that a quarter of that food was wasted during preparation, cooking and usage. Literally about 53 USD goes into the dustbin every month, which amounted to 631 USD a year.

In 2012, it was reported that Malaysians produced 33,000 tonnes of solid waste daily and will exceed the projected production of 30,000 tonnes by 2020. According to Moh and Abd Manaf (2014), the overall waste composition in Malaysia is dominated by municipal solid waste (MSW) (64%), followed by industrial waste (25%), commercial waste (8%) and construction waste (3%). MSW generally consist of around 20 different categories which are food waste, paper (mixed), cardboard, plastics (rigid, film and foam), textile, wood waste, metals (ferrous or non-ferrous), diapers, newsprint, high grade and fine paper, fruit waste, green waste, batteries, construction waste and glass; these categories can be grouped into organic and inorganic. Generally, MSW in Malaysia consists of 50% of food waste, and 70% as disposed at the landfill sites (Nadzri, 2013) and households are the primary source of MSW in Malaysia.

Food Waste Management in Malaysia

In order to increase efficiency further, the government has delegated waste management to private consortiums. The privatization of urban solid waste management in Malaysia was initiated in 1993 with the objective of providing an integrated, effective, efficient, and technologically advanced solid waste management system. It was also expected to resolve the problems of solid waste management faced by the local authorities (LAs) such as financial difficulty, lack of expertise, illegal dumping, open burning, and a lack of proper solid waste disposal sites. The steady increase in MSW over the years has prompted government-funded public information campaigns to establish awareness and to create environmental consciousness among the general public (Agamuthu, 2009).

Currently, there are a few types of technologies applied in the Malaysia waste management system. Table 1 presents the types of waste management used and the percentage of waste disposed in different years.

Table 1. Method of waste disposal in Malaysia

Source: Agamuthu, 2009

At present, landfilling is the main method of waste disposal (80% usage) in Malaysia. This method is expected to reach down to 65% in 2020.  In European countries, only those that cannot be recycled will be taken to the landfill, whereas in many of developing Asian countries such as Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, India and Indonesia, all types of wastes (e.g. municipal waste, industrial waste, construction waste) are disposed in landfills without any pre-treatment (Ismail and Manaf, 2013).

Most landfills in the country are in bad conditions, and operated without proper protective measures, such as lining systems, leachate treatment and gas venting (Ismail & Manaf, 2013). Statistics show that there are 186 waste disposal sites that are in operation, out of which only eight (8) are considered sanitary, while many of the others are open dump sites (UPM, 2006). In Terengganu, three of the seven waste disposal sites in the state were in critical condition with overflowing garbage, which is environmentally hazardous (The Star, 2016).  This dependency on landfill as waste disposal method is estimated to increase the emission of GHG to 50% by 2020 (MEAKO, 2015). Landfills also created various environmental problems such as leachate, groundwater contamination, potential release of toxic gases and odor. A big part of these problems comes from organic waste and solid waste. As available landfill space decreases and the cost of siting and building new landfill increases, the government struggled to develop alternative means to meet the demand of waste disposal. It has emerged as a potentially viable means by which local governments can reduce the volume of waste entering landfills.

Diverting food waste from landfills will not only conserve limited landfill space, but also help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  Anaerobic digestion was recognized as an economic and environmental friendly solution to food waste. In the anaerobic digestion process, organic matter is broken down in a zero-oxygen (anaerobic) atmosphere to form a gas mixture known as biogas, which consists of methane (50–70% volume), carbon dioxide (25–50% volume) and other small quantities of hydrogen, hydrogen sulphide, ammonia and other trace gases. This method has a lot of qualitative benefits such as reducing the amount of MSW, transportation cost of carrying MSW to land fill, emissions and leachate of landfill, increasing life span of landfill and reducing land use (MEAKO, 2015). The sewerage industry in Malaysia can be technologically advanced by implementing an anaerobic digestion system in the mechanized treatment plants which is a promising source for biogas production from the waste generated in the sewage treatment plants (Kumaran et al .,2016). The production of biogas such as biomethane has a great potential to be used as biofuel (Jerry et al ., 2013). Another study by Chain et al ., (2016) also stated that the usage of biomethane as a natural gas for pipelines and vehicles is increasing.

According to a previous study, Malaysian municipal solid waste stream contains approximately 40–60% of retrievable materials (Agamuthu et al ., 2009), including food waste, paper, plastics, glass, ferrous metal and aluminum. Plastics are probably the most common recyclable materials with potential application in Malaysia as they are widely used and being disposed indiscriminately to the landfills. It is essential to understand that not only strengthening recycling initiatives extend the life span of landfills but also supporting the economy as recycling provides profitable opportunities of business. (Moh & Abd Manaf, 2014). The government has been promoting the “3Rs program”: “reduce, recycle and reuse”. However, it is regarded to be still in an early stage (Sin et al ., 2013).

Over the decade, the Malaysian government has gradually established several MSW incineration plants, meanwhile emphasizing the 3Rs programme (reduce, reuse, and recycle). A proper and well defined policy and relevant technologies were used in managing wastes production. For instance, the construction activities are required to reduce the adverse effects addressing environmental, social, and economical aspects (Sin et al ., 2013).

Policies, measurements and initiatives on food waste in Malaysia

The steady increase in MSW over the years has resulted in government-funded public information campaigns to establish awareness and to create environmental consciousness among the general public. In 1988, the government introduced the Action Plan for a Beautiful and Clean (ABC) Malaysia, and a series of recycling campaigns followed in consecutive years. The campaigns were not successful due to minimal responses from the general public, although the environmental awareness and knowledge on waste management among the public did increase slightly (Agamuthu et al ., 2009). 

The National Policy on Municipal Solid Waste Management, commonly known as the National Strategic Plan (NSP) succeeded the ABC Plan when it was formulated in 2002 and later adopted in 2005. Sustainable waste management through reduction, reuse and recycling with the use of appropriate technologies, facilities and equipment to provide a sustainable and comprehensive solid waste management service became the key strategies in NSP.

Basically, the waste management adopted under this strategic plan aimed to;

• reduce waste through effective management of resources at levels of raw materials utilization, production, distribution, marketing and consumption;
• increase the number of sanitary landfill facilities;
• reuse products and materials;
• recycle reusable elements of waste through separation at source, separation during waste collection and recovery at materials recovery facilities;
• implement intermediate treatment of waste;
• generate the value of the waste (through composting or waste to energy)  (Moh and Abd Manaf, 2014).

Then, the Malaysian government implemented The Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management (SWPCM) Bill in 2007. The money was used in managing the amenities from roads and toilets to drains, food courts, and grassed areas by the roadside, and covered the management of solid waste from commercial centers, public sites, construction sites, households, industrial zones, and institutions, as well as imported solid wastes.

The Malaysian government has put an effort in pursuing environmentally sustainable development, which can be seen in various strategies, frameworks and plans. For example, The Third Outline Perspective Plan (OPP3) constitutes the second decade of development under Vision 2020, from 2001 to 2010, focusing on reducing energy, materials, pollution and waste intensity of urban and industrial activities. The Eighth Malaysian Plan (MP 8) covers the initial phase of OPP3 from 2001 to 2005 which introduces the comprehensive waste management policy highlighting issues of waste reduction, reuse and recycling whereas the Ninth Malaysian Plan (MP 9) reassures the continued effort in 3Rs awareness raising campaigns despite ongoing efforts resulting in very low recycling rate of 5%. As for the Tenth Malaysian Plan (MP 10), operationalizing National Policy on the Environment (2002), the National Green Technology Policy (2009) and the National Climate Change Policy (2009) are implemented as the key to sustainability in conserving and preserving the environmental resources, besides improving solid waste management (Sin et al ., 2013).

Recently, in the Eleventh Malaysia Plan (MP 11) (2016-2020), the government revisited the Solid Waste & Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 (Act 672) in order to strengthen the institutional framework and to reinforce coordination among relevant ministries and agencies. As stated in the MP 11, the Government target was to achieve a 22% recycling rate among households in Malaysia by 2020. While the Government are putting in place systems that enable better waste management, getting households to practice recycling is more challenging as it requires mind-set and social behavioral change. Malaysians will certainly have to inculcate better consumption and waste disposal behavior- a prerequisite for a developed nation by 2020 (EPU, 2015).

The National Biomass Strategy 2020 was launched in 2013 to assess how Malaysia develops new industries by utilizing agricultural biomass waste for high value products, including those for exports. The Government has been encouraging Malaysians to tap on their creativity and innovativeness on how to best divert the wastes towards productive use, generating economic value and reducing landfills problems. The industries were encouraged to reduce the dependency on natural resources when wastes become valuable resources, either by conversion of biomass and food waste to power generation or other products (Globoforce.com, n.d.).

Currently in Malaysia , the MSW management is under the responsibility of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (MHLG). The Department of Environment (DOE) is in charge of hazardous waste, whereas clinical waste is under the management of the Ministry of Health (MOH). Basically, it is Malaysia’s National Solid Waste Management Department (NSWMD) that formulates and proposes policies, plans and strategies in respect of solid waste management and public cleansing. It sets standards, specifications and codes of practice exercising regulatory function and grants licenses and approval under Act 672. On the other hand, the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (PPSPPA) implements the formulated policies, plans and strategies proposed by NSWMD, monitoring the compliance of standards, specifications and code of practices implementing the solid waste management, and enforcing public cleansing laws and recommends reform to such laws (Moh & Abd Manaf, 2014).

Future Demand and Current Initiatives

Despite the Master Plans and Action Plans, as well as the NSP, the strategies only focused on recyclable materials. Innovative strategies for proper management of the food wastes are still very limited and under-developed (Nadzri, 2013). A strategic plan particularly focused on food waste management is crucial, which should emphasize the concepts of 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) in order to address the challenge of the overall waste management in Malaysia. At the moment, the government is working on a National Strategic Plan for Food Waste Management in Malaysia, which is a collaborating project between the Ministry of Housing and Local Government Malaysia (MHLG) and the Ministry of the Environment Japan (MOEJ).

The objectives of the project are:

• To develop a National Strategic Plan for Food Waste Management in Malaysia
• To learn from Japan the good practices of food waste management, including the technical and legal perspectives,
• To gather information about the current practice of food waste management in Malaysia, including residential, commercial and industrial waste,
• To conduct pilot projects and, judging from the results, to determine the best possible solutions for food waste management for different waste generators in Malaysia

The implementation of the strategic plan will be done in stages and in line with the current act and regulations. As for now, MOEJ is preparing the Action Plans and Guidelines, drafting out Food Waste Regulation, planning of centralized treatment facilities, assessing targets and data collection approaches, as well as decisions on possible incentives.

Malaysian government and many NGOs are embarking on campaigns to reduce food waste. Some NGOs have always been mindful of and worried about the situation,advocating against throwing the leftovers straight into the dustbin. Food Aid Foundation is one of them. They act as a food bank where manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, companies or individuals are encouraged to donate their discarded foods, which would be collected and allocated to welfare institutions, refugee communities, poor families, as well as soup kitchens, among others. All must strive to be conscientious when it comes to the way they treat food and basically cannot afford to waste it. All are also urged to share food with the poor − not only from leftovers, but on the same day it is harvested.

As the Global initiatives, FAO collaborates with donors, bi- and multi-lateral agencies and financial institutions and private sector partners (the food packaging industry and others) to develop and implement the program on food loss and waste reduction. They introduced the SAVE FOOD initiative that aimed at encouraging dialogue between industry, research institution, policy makers, and civil society on food losses. For this purpose, the initiative regularly brought together stakeholders involved in the food supply chain for conferences and projects, and supported them in developing effective measures. Another goal is to raise public awareness of the impact of food waste. The SAVE FOOD put the issue of global food losses onto the political and economic agenda (FAO, 2011).

Malaysia also participated in this initiative by establishing MYSavefood network. The Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry (MOA) are the coordinators of the MYsavefood program, which promoted the reduction of food loss and food waste in Malaysia. There are many stakeholders participated in this network as many realized the importance of the initiative. The network constantly updated information from local and international sources on ways of reducing food loss and food waste and advocating the voluntary approach through awareness, persuasion and education, appealing to public and stakeholders in the food and beverages industry (Malaysia Kini, 2016).

 The policy makers in Malaysia can also consider adopting the French way of dealing the food waste. Under a recent law passed by the French senate, supermarkets are banned from throwing away or destroying unsold food. They have to donate these to charities and food banks instead. It would be good if a similar law was introduced to this country. Besides preventing food waste, Malaysians can also become a leader in combating the problem of food waste in the region (Muzaffar, 2016).

Malaysia faces the challenge to provide food security, food safety and sustainable development in agricultural sector. Yet more than one third of the food produced today is lost or wasted. This kind of food waste represents a missed opportunity to improve food security.  The first solution to food waste problems involves changes in consumers’ behavior and massive shifts of industrial procedures (such as food processors, etc.) and retailers. In order to meet the challenge of constructing a sustainable food supply, it requires everyone’s involvement along the food supply chain, including policy makers, food producers and suppliers, and food consumers.

There are some drawbacks including poor public participation, lack of efficient indicators to monitor performance, and uncertainty regarding policy outcomes since there is no one-size-fits-all solution to food waste, policy measures to address it should be custom tailored for each individual situation, integrate community needs, and involve a package of several measures. Holistic approaches which integrate education, financial aspects, and logistical improvements across food and waste systems are ideal. To achieve the national goal, the government needs to focus on the research, development and innovation in this particular area. Appropriate planning and implementation approaches need to be strengthened to prevent failure. In the future, relevant research is needed to enhance and develop the specific policies such as National Strategic Plan for Food Waste Management in Malaysia.

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Food Waste Behaviour and Awareness of Malaysian

Chooi lin phooi.

1 Department of Crop Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

Elisa Azura Azman

Roslan ismail.

2 Department of Land Management, Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

3 Institut Tanah Dan Ukur Negara (INSTUN), Kementerian Tenaga Dan Sumber Asli, Behrang, Tanjong Malim 35950, Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia

Jasmin Arif Shah

4 Department of Agriculture Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

Evelyn Shin Rou Koay

5 Faculty of Sustainable Agriculture, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Sandakan 90000, Sabah, Malaysia

Associated Data

The figure data used to support the findings of this study have been deposited in the figshare repository (10.6084/m9.figshare.20436465).

Food waste is a vast issue global, including in Malaysia. Food waste brings negative impacts, including increasing food production costs, impact on human health, and environmental degradation. Malaysian's animal- and plant-based diet preferences affected the desired food waste decomposition method as most of the methods only allow plant-based material to be utilized as food waste compost. The objectives of this study were to understand Malaysians' awareness of food waste behaviour and the food waste component for the decomposition. Malaysians usually produce more plant-based food waste than animal-based food waste. Most Malaysians have a high awareness of causes and impact of food waste, but they lack action on food waste reduction. Bio-compost is believed to be the most effective method to manage food waste, and most of them were willing to have it at home. However, some of them are unwilling to have a compost pile at home because there is no time to take care of it.

1. Introduction

Food waste is deemed against Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 (global food loss and waste). There was approximately 13.8% of food loss in the supply chain, such as harvest, transport, storage, and processing, in 2016 [ 1 ]. Industrialized countries are the major contributors to household food waste. Food waste is directly associated with social (e.g., health, equality), economic (e.g., increasing costs, consumption, resource efficiency, price volatility, waste management, commodity markets), and environmental (e.g., water, climate change, energy, depletion of resources, disruption of biogenic cycles due to intensive agricultural activities) impacts [ 2 ]. Resource-intensive food production causes damage to the environment; for instance, water and air pollution, deforestation, soil erosion, and greenhouse gas emissions occur during food production, storage, conveyance, and waste management [ 3 ]. Moreover, a lot of money could be saved by halting food waste.

Food waste is referred to as the food that is removed from the food supply chain during the phases of pre- and postconsumer. Food loss and waste are gradually decreased along the food supply chain during food quality inspection. Food loss particularly occurs from harvesting to retailers, food service providers, and consumers, whereas food waste usually occurs at the retail and consumer levels [ 4 ]. Food losses generally happen in the early phases of the food supply chain, while food waste occurs later. Food waste is viewed as a preventable food loss such as spoilage due to the mismanagement of temperature [ 5 ]. It may become an obstacle to achieving other goals, for example, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving food security and nutrition, lowering pressure on water and land resources, and increasing productivity and economic growth [ 4 ].

Reducing food waste can be measured using 3R—reducing, reusing, and recycling [ 6 ]. It is also related to our food-related routine and practices. The flow can be started from planning, shopping, storing, cooking, eating, and management [ 7 ]. Good planning strategies such as creating shopping lists, meal plan combinations, and inventory checking before shopping showed low food waste reported [ 7 ], and trying not to fall into the commercial trap such as “Buy one get one” while shopping. Purchase should be based on the need for the food on specific days. Traditional practice was used for waste management when there were fewer techniques and knowledge during ancient times. Food waste can be reduced by preparing and consuming food in a sufficient amount. The leftovers can be recycled to produce commercial products including ethanol and biofuel. Food waste behaviour can be minimized by planning purchases, cooking, and eating practices [ 6 , 7 ].

Sustainable Development Goal 12 ensures sustainable consumption and production patterns targeted (12.3) halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along the production and supply chains, including postharvest losses and (12.5) substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse by 2030 [ 1 ]. Food waste causes vary according to countries [ 8 ]; however, food waste behaviours and composition in Malaysia remain unclear. Therefore, the food production chain and food waste management can be adjusted with consumer behaviour and awareness.

The study questions were as follows: (1) Do Malaysians know the impact of food waste? (2) What are their actions related to food waste? (3) Do their eating diet affect the food waste composition? and (4) Does Malaysia provide a food waste management system? Hence, the objectives of this study were to understand the food waste behaviour and awareness of Malaysian and to understand the food waste component for the decomposition of Malaysia for better waste management.

2. Study Approach

This study conducted an online survey with two demographic sections and food waste-related questions. Food waste is determined by physiological factors and food-related routines [ 9 ]. Gender and marital status are closely related to food waste behaviour, where females and married are prone to reduce food waste [ 10 ]. Thus, the distribution of the respondents was included in the survey ( Figure 1 ). High moral attitudes brought low food waste behaviour [ 10 ].

Distribution of the respondents in Malaysia.

The 3R practices are comprehensive and holistic measurements. Anticipated guilt (emotional) and a sense of community (social) were the drivers of food waste behaviour and are positively related to the practicing of 3R [ 6 ]. Thus, the sections on eating behaviour, food preparation behaviour, plate waste behaviour, and cognition were to understand respondents' behaviour better. Furthermore, high awareness of food waste impact and environmental knowledge showed high 3R practices [ 6 ]. Therefore, the section on the awareness of food waste impact and its management was generated. Calculation of the amount of food waste in grams was presumed, and the respondents were guided to assume one spoon equal to 50 grams [ 11 ].

The survey is performed based on a probability sample of 400 Malaysian respondents ( Table 1 ; Figure 1 ) to represent the population of Malaysia (32, 814, 249). The survey questions were multilingual, including English, Malay, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese, and were modified and adapted according to the study [ 9 , 11 , 12 ]. The survey was initiated in November 2021 and ended in January 2022. The respondents were approached through social media such as e-mail, WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram, and Facebook.

Respondent's characteristics.

3. Results and Discussion

3.1. causes of food waste.

The majority (95.75%) of the respondents were plant and animal consumers ( Table 1 ). The food waste composition such as raw animal-based, raw plant-based, cooked animal-based, and cooked plant-based was more than 50% ( Figure 2 ). About half of the respondents (47.50%) claimed no cooked animal-based waste ( Figure 2 ). Only 1% of the respondents declared that they discarded more than one pot of food. However, most of them claimed that they were good at food planning ( Figure 3 ), and this may probably be due to the consumers having different tastes in their cooking. It was found that their cooking can modify their cooking manner to suit consumers' tastes. On the flip side, the consumers should be tolerant of the taste of the food. Therefore, consumer preference should be observed and asked before cooking. In addition, food waste management on animal-related foods is required since most of the composting methods are not suitable for it.

Food waste composition such as raw animal-based, raw plant-based, cooked animal-based, and cooked plant-based wasted as none, one spoon, one spoon to 1 plate, one plate to 1 pot, and more than one pot. The assumption was made as one serving spoon is equal to 50 grams, one plate is equal to 500 grams, and one pot is equal to 1000 grams.

Household skills claimed by respondents.

More than half of the respondents (61%) stated that raw plant-based food was discarded daily ( Figure 2 ). Most of them mentioned that there were only 26% of raw plant-based food discarded per day. This indicated that Malaysians have good behaviour in practices of reducing food waste. Some of the raw plant-based foods are anyhow avoidable. Nearly half of avoidable food (46%) such as fresh, raw, or minimally processed state was wasted in the United Kingdom (UK) [ 13 ].

Less than half of Malaysians claimed that they do not waste any cooked plant- and animal-based food, with 41.75% and 45.70%, respectively. According to the results, most Malaysians tend to waste cooked food. Hence, parents should start home education for their children, and parents should become their role models to know the preciousness of the food. Religions may also play an important role in reducing food waste. For formal education, teachers can educate the students on how to grow vegetables to know the preciousness of the food from a young age. Approximately 27% of cooked or prepared food is wasted, and 20% is ready to consume when purchased [ 13 ]. In addition, starchy foods are the most commonly wasted food after being prepared [ 13 ].

Most of the Malaysians have 5 (20.05%), 4 (16.04%), and 3 (14.03%) household size ( Figure 4 ). Food waste amount was influenced by sociodemographic variables such as education, employment, income, and the number of members in the household. Countryside households donated less to food waste generation than town areas [ 14 ]. Behaviours such as buying the best offers and eating out frequently increased food wastage [ 14 ].

Household size of the Malaysians.

The nutritional benefits of meals such as school lunches and home meals are reduced by plate waste [ 15 ]. The preparation method highly affected the acceptance rate of plate waste [ 15 ]. For instance, well-prepared and easy-to-consume foods such as mashed potatoes and heated fries had high acceptance, but mashed potatoes were wasted less [ 15 ]. Uncut apples had lower acceptance (23%) and greater waste (62%) compared with applesauce (37% acceptance, 23% waste) [ 15 ].

In Danish households, the ratio of unavoidable food waste to avoidable food waste was 2 to 3 (based on kg per household per year) [ 16 ]. In Finnish households, food waste including vegetables, home-cooked food, and milk products ranged from 0 to 160 kg/year [ 17 ]. Singles tend to waste more food than others [ 16 , 17 ]. In Mamelodi, 58% of households in developing countries wasted the largest portion of porridge, while 26% and 16% of households mainly wasted rice and bread, respectively [ 18 ].

Malaysians declared that the reasons for food waste are exceeding the expiry date (32.15%), followed by food spoils (30.32%) and food not being fresh (16.93%) ( Figure 5 ). Some of them also declared that they forget about the food (0.25%). In-home consumer waste is affected by poor purchase and meal planning, excess buying (influenced by over-large portioning and package sizes), confusion over labels (e.g., best before and use by), and poor in-home storage [ 4 ]. Knowledge about “best before” and “used by date” was lacking among the consumers, and they tend to be misled by the consumers to throw away the edible food. Therefore, educating them to know the difference in the expiry date is very important for reducing food waste. Perhaps, Malaysians may also overestimate their household skills, especially in meal planning, for the quantity of food they need (45.8%) ( Figure 3 ). Thus, Malaysians paid less attention to food waste due to their personal behaviour.

Reasons for food waste declared by respondents.

The primary triggers for food waste were (1) the preparation of food, including porridge and rice [ 17 , 18 ]; (2) spoilage of food such as bread reaching the expiry date before being consumed [ 17 , 18 ]; (3) buying in excess [ 17 , 18 ]; and plate leftovers [ 17 ]. Food such as vegetables, fruits, and berries are usually wasted when people do not consume them adequately [ 17 ]. Out-grading or quality control, damaged or inadequately prepared items, overstocking or over-preparation of food, unpurchased speciality holiday food, damaged packaging, and routine kitchen preparation waste lead to food waste at the retail and institutional levels [ 19 ].

Malaysians believed the most serious food waste banquet is a wedding or bereavement event (51.77%), followed by a commercial banquet (39.14%), a family fest (7.07%), and a friend feast (2.02%) ( Figure 6 ). A wedding or bereavement event is believed to be the event that leads to the most serious food waste. These conditions were similar to Macau [ 12 ], and this may be due to the reason of high living standards and low environmental conscience ( Figure 7 ) in Macau [ 12 ]. The high living standard also increased the total food waste [ 20 , 21 ]. Nonetheless, household income may not show a clear factor in food waste [ 22 ]. People are demanding exquisite food and thus encourage the people to supply more food during the event. People are not precious the food on hand compared to a few eras ago, which less developed living environment. Besides, Malaysians tend to order too much unintentionally, which is beyond their eating ability ( Figure 7 ), and hence, they need to balance their greed and needs, especially during wedding or bereavement events. Moreover, people like to show off their status and trigger them to design a delicacies wedding or bereavement event menu. Yet, the guests are taking too much or not suitable for the guests to consume. The chefs may not be able to maintain cook the food to standard for the whole event.

The most serious food waste banquet believed by Malaysians.

Current food waste reasons believed by Malaysians.

3.2. Awareness of Food Waste Impact

Malaysians have a high awareness of food waste. More than 70% of Malaysians feel that wasting food is a guilty action, a waste of money, natural recourses, including water, and farmer planting efforts ( Figure 8 ). Beliefs such as feeling guilty decreased food waste generation [ 14 ]. Most Malaysians also believe that food waste will increase the waste management cost (20.61%), followed by pest invitation (17.87%) and water pollution (15.46%) ( Figure 8 ). It was a good sign when there was a reduction in food waste, as this indicated that they understood and knew about the impact of food waste. However, only 0.72% of Malaysians stated that they do not know about the impact of food waste ( Figure 9 ).

Perception of food waste.

Perception of food waste impact.

Only 11.94% of Malaysians think food waste will increase food production costs ( Figure 9 ). Food waste will waste money and cause harmfulness to the economy. The price transmission all along the supply chain is affected by an initiative to reduce food loss or waste. Nevertheless, the exact effect of food loss and waste reduction relies on how effectively the price changes are transmitted and how closely the markets are incorporated. Therefore, a major aspect is the distance or proximity to the location of the reduction [ 4 ]. For illustration, the local food security impact may strengthen by reducing losses on small farms in lower-income countries, and thus, surplus food will be available in the local area. However, reducing food waste in high-income consumers does not mean that surplus food is available for the poor and food-insecure people in a distant country, and their level of food insecurity remains the same. Food loss and waste reduction strategies are determined by the level of food insecurity in a country [ 4 ].

Food loss and waste imply poor resources use and adverse environmental impacts. It is estimated that more pressure will be put on natural resources as the rising incomes and growing population will increase food demand [ 4 ]. Reducing food loss and waste is crucial to improving the use of natural resources; however, it will contribute to lower greenhouse gases emissions per unit of food consumed directly as there will be more food reaching the consumer for a given level of resources used [ 2 , 4 ]. Moreover, the growth of the economy also changed moral and ethical relations [ 23 ], increased food waste [ 20 , 21 ], reduced environmental quality, and evaluated the carbon dioxide emission in Malaysia [ 24 ].

3.3. Awareness of Food Waste Management

The effective way to reduce food waste believed by Malaysians are implementing a food waste charging or penalty system (34.76%), more programs or activities to raise residents' awareness (23.17%), and having restaurants encourage leftover packing (20.40%) ( Figure 10 ). Most Malaysians believe that the penalty for food waste can be the solution to reduce food waste as most of them think food waste is equal to wasting money ( Figure 8 ). However, this would be limited to certain restaurants, and Malaysian may not keep on with the eating habit that does not waste food at home. Besides that, the restaurant owner may not claim the penalty with their customers as this action may affect their business and profit. Arguments might occur regarding who will be the party to pay for the penalties of food waste between the collection of penalties to the upper (restaurant staff), middle (trash collector), and bottom (digestion and factory staff) stream of the food waste management.

Effective ways to reduce food waste believed by respondents.

Most Malaysians discard their food waste to the normal dustbin (37.13%), followed by feeding nearby dogs and cats (27.49%) and compost (18.86%) ( Figure 11 ). Malaysians believed that the most effective way to manage the food is bio-compost (86.22%), followed by landfill (30.1%) and mixing into the Manipal solid waste for incineration (9.352%) ( Figure 12 ). More than half of the respondents (67.00%) believed food waste dumpsite in Malaysia is inappropriate ( Table 2 ). It might take several years if they relied on the government to provide an appropriate dump site for food waste. Therefore, being self-responsible for food waste is important for keeping a clean and sustainable environment. Fortunately, most Malaysians (75.75%) are willing to have a composting pile at home ( Table 2 ). However, only 59.50% of Malaysians are willing to do more for food separation. The remaining were not willing to have a compost pile at home due to the reasons of no time to take care of it (29.76%), followed by no space (26.32%) and smelly (22.60%) ( Figure 13 ).

Food waste management claimed by respondents.

The effective ways for reducing food waste that Malaysians believe.

Willingness to have a composting pile at home.

Perception of respondents on having an appropriate food waste dumpsite in the current location, having a compost pile at home, and paying more for food separation.

This finding was similar to what the people who live in Macau believed. About 70% of people in Macau think that bio-compost is the best way to treat food waste [ 12 ]. However, they are not willing to have a compost pile at home due to the reasons of pest attraction (20%), smell (22%), no extra space allowed (25%), no time to take care of it (28%), and other reasons (4%) [ 12 ]. Approximately 70% of people in Macau are willing to pay more for food waste separation; nevertheless, it is correspondent to the level of income and age [ 12 ].

Malaysians do have environmental and food waste consciousness (Figures ​ (Figures8 8 and ​ and9); 9 ); however, they prefer to waste food first and manage the food waste against environmental impact. Prevention is better cure. Food waste prevention should educate young to avoid the consequences, which cost money, the environment, and physical and mental health. For instance, food waste management contributed up to 6% of food waste-related impact in Europe [ 25 ].

Despite food waste prevention, the food waste management approach is composting, anaerobic digestion, incineration, thermal conversion, landfilling in-sink food, drying for animal feed, co-digestion at waste water treatment plant (WWTP), and bio-valorisation, and yet, they do bring both positive and negative impacts on water and energy consumption and offsets [ 5 ]. Landfill food waste is also suggested to be banned as it is not eco-friendly [ 26 ]. Therefore, food waste management is costly in terms of not only money but also the environment.

Cooked food wastes are more suitable for transforming into feedstocks than raw ones [ 27 ]. This is because cooked food waste was high in nutrients than the raw ones; nonetheless, cooked food wastes had lower temporal variability [ 27 ]. Black soldier fly is the most economically favourable food waste treatment [ 28 ]. However, food waste can also be degraded by anaerobic digestion economically with the existence of an anaerobic digestion plant [ 28 ]. Black soldier flies food waste treatment reduced 20% of the biomethane potential [ 28 ].

A convenient, easy, and household-scale food waste management system can be introduced in Malaysia. This system was introduced to provide an easy way for Malaysians to manage food waste, and this also can encourage Malaysians to be responsible for their food waste. Food waste digestion has various aerobically (thermal composting, vermicomposting) and anaerobic methods (Bokashi).

Thermal compost experiences phases such as mesophilic, thermophilic, and stable phases. The thermophilic phase has a peak temperature range between 45 and 70°C [ 29 ]. Thermal composting and vermicomposting are time-consuming (more than 12 weeks) and not suitable for routine use [ 30 , 31 ]. Besides, thermal composting is a precomposting for 9 days, followed by 2.5 months of vermicompost, which can produce safe compost with reduced mass, pathogen, and moisture management [ 32 ]. However, it was still considered a time-consuming method, and it required obtaining worms as the sources of vermicompost. After vermicomposting, the worm is separated from the compost manually or by a factory-scale separator [ 33 ]. It is not suitable for the household scale and is quite labour-intensive.

Bokashi would be a suitable choice at the household level to manage food waste. Bokashi is a process, meaning fermented organic matter using effective microorganisms (EM), molasses, and water. The main advantage of Bokashi is short processing time (7 to 21 days) [ 2 , 34 – 36 ]. Furthermore, Bokashi only required a small corner or space to digest the food waste. Apart from that, Bokashi continuously allowed the top-up of food waste (raw materials) in a pile. It is suitable for household scale to carry out composting with a small amount of food waste, which is 1 spoon to 1 plate ( Figure 2 ), and this can fulfil the Malaysians who are not willing to have a compost pile at home ( Figure 13 ). Bokashi can be classified into aerobic and anaerobic digestion [ 35 ]. However, it was deemed that it is anaerobic at the early stage and aerobic at the later stage for greater product stability [ 35 ]. High ammonium and low nitrate concentrations were found at the Bokashi low oxygen level [ 35 ].

A relatively good food waste management method can be introduced to Malaysians through social media or stricter ways involving the law and regulations. Malaysian news media can introduce the method to manage food waste; thus, the elder can have the basic knowledge of it. Besides, the community of apartments can have a community compost pile for their community garden. The community can also strengthen their relationships by carrying out this action. In Taiwan, food waste is collected daily at a specific time in the evening in a separate bin. Therefore, Taiwan has no dumpsite with food waste that can be disrupted by stray cats and dogs.

4. Conclusions

More than 50% of Malaysian wasted food daily. Most Malaysians claimed they have good household skills but are low in action to manage them. Furthermore, the high living standard makes the community have low environmental consciousness even though they understand wasting food is equal to wasting money and increased food waste management cost. Therefore, they believed implementing of food waste charging/penalty system is the most effective way to reduce waste. They tend to discard food waste to normal dustbins even though they believed the best management is bio-composting. Malaysians understood the impact of food waste and the relatively good management method. However, there is not much action done to reduce food waste. Therefore, easy and convenient composting such as Bokashi can be introduced to Malaysians.

Data Availability

Conflicts of interest.

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.

Overview on food waste management and composting practice in Malaysia

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A. A. Hashim , A. A. Kadir , M. H. Ibrahim , S. Halim , N. A. Sarani , M. I. H. Hassan , N. J. A. Hamid , N. N. H. Hashar , N. F. N. Hissham; Overview on food waste management and composting practice in Malaysia. AIP Conf. Proc. 3 May 2021; 2339 (1): 020181. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0044206

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In Malaysia, about 16,688 tonnes of food waste is generated per day. Despite its bio-degradable characteristics which have high potential to be composted, nearly 80% of the generated food waste is still disposed at the landfill. This paper provides an insight on the scenario of food waste management in Malaysia including the amount of food waste generated, government’s policies, regulation and initiatives as well as public awareness on composting approach as an alternative to reduce food waste disposal in Malaysia. The public awareness on the composting approach was obtained from various surveys conducted from the previous study. It is found that the initiative of the government on the enhancement of food waste management is still ineffective due to the limited budget as well as lack of public awareness on the segregation of food waste at the source. The results of the survey depicted that the awareness of Malaysians on the food waste composting is relatively poor. Amongst the contributory factors are lack of facility for composting and insufficient knowledge on the composting steps. It is expected that the simplified review on the food waste management and composting practice in Malaysia could provide an understanding to the community on the importance of food waste separation and composting to prevent environmental pollution.

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• Corpus ID: 222122864

Household food wastage prevention in Malaysia: An Issue Processes Model perspective (Pencegahan pembaziran makanan bagi isi rumah di Malaysia: Perspektif Model Proses Isu)

• S. A. Razak , Siti Wahidah Abd Ghafar , +2 authors Aniadila
• Published 2019
• Environmental Science, Business

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Why Malaysians need to reduce daily food waste

Tuesday, 04 Jul 2023

Students who are part of 'Projek Pinggan Licin: Every Scrap Matters', to raise awareness among the public about food waste. — Photos: Projek Pinggan Licin

Even with escalating prices of goods, more than half of Malaysians waste food daily despite knowing that the act is wasteful and possessing good household skills – cooking included – according to a study by researchers from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) last year.

The Food Waste Behaviour and Awareness of Malaysians report also found that more than 70% feel wasting food is irresponsible and a waste of money, natural resources and agricultural efforts, but less than 10% really understand the impact food waste has on the planet.

And this has not even taken into account unconsumed food from hotels and restaurants that customarily served buffet for breaking of fast.

Every scrap matters

It was this alarming report that made advertising student Tengku Nur Zahirah Tengku Mahmood, 25 chose food waste as the subject for her final year project.

The Faculty of Mass Communication, Universiti Teknologi Mara student is the leader of "Projek Pinggan Licin: Every Scrap Matters", an online public service campaign with an on-ground event held last Saturday in Setia Alam, Selangor.

“We want to advocate the public to take baby steps in reducing food waste, and the first step is to simply polish their plate, or in Malay, makan sampai licin ,” Tengku Nur Zahirah says, adding that #KasiLicinLah is the campaign’s main hashtag.

She's not advocating people to overeat, but to take only what they need and finish their meal. “If one person who wastes a plate of food per meal now wastes nothing, we can have three plates less of food waste daily. It may be small for a start, but we have to begin somewhere,”

The campaign also collaborated with The Lost Food Project, a non-profit organisation that rescues quality, nutritious food that would end up in landfill, and redistribute them to those who need it.

Scraps to stock

Graphic designer Rubynee Ravindran, 26 from Puchong, Selangor says rotting food in the landfill produces methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change.

“We think that it will decompose in the landfill and that’s about it. But what we don’t know is that all that waste will eventually affect our food supply system,” she says.

A vegetarian who is going vegan, Rubynee says she has less food waste now that she has consciously taken steps to reduce it. “Most of my food waste is food scraps from my vegetables which I usually make the most out of,” she says.

Her close friend taught her to save carrot heads and putting them in water to let it grow. “Not only does it supply me with carrots for my next meal but it gives me another plant in the house,” adds Rubynee, who also makes her own compost for her potted plants.

While turning leftovers into a new dish is nothing new to her, Rubynee goes the extra mile by turning food scraps into vegetable stock and natural skin care.

On top of these kitchen DIY efforts, Rubynee also strongly believes that planning one’s meals and grocery shopping list will save money.

But what hurts her most while grocery shopping is the sight of food wastage in the supermarket. “It’s a lot. And the fact that they need to separate the imperfect but still edible food is heartbreaking. Consumers are fussy so supermarkets put only perfect-looking vegetables on the shelves, and if we want to reduce food waste, I think we need to collectively change that mindset," she says.

Pack leftovers

With global inflation and the rising prices of goods, mother of two Amy Koh, 39 says she feels the financial pinch. “Prices of groceries, including fresh food are much higher now, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic. Even non-branded items and generic brands are expensive,” she says.

Believing in the adage of “wasting food equals wasting money”, Koh believes it is very important for everyone to reduce food waste.

“This is of course not more important than the fact that there are less fortunate people who probably won’t know when and what their next meals are,” she adds.

Koh is a firm believer that no food should go to waste. “If there are leftovers from our meal outside, we pack them and eat them at another time. This saves us the money to be spent on our next meal. We also save time and energy,” she says.

Koh says she plans and prepares meals for her family in advance, and cooks them in bulk. And when the family goes out for dinner, they will order food to share.

“As adults, we eat less. So we let the kids order their food while my husband and I share one meal and finish the remaining food from the kids’ plates,” she concludes. "It helps reduce our restaurant spending and we will only order what we can eat," she says.

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1. introduction, 2. definition of food waste, 3. food waste generation in malaysia, 4. government policies and regulations on food waste in malaysia, 5. food waste prevention activities by organisations in malaysia, 6. conclusion.

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Trujillo Principles for Preventing and Reducing Food Loss and Waste in the Asia-Pacific Region

• According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), it is estimated that one-third of the food produced globally, equivalent to 1.3 billion metric tons, is lost or wasted along the food supply chain each year; however, more than 3 billion people do not have physical and economic access to sufficient amounts of affordable, safe and nutritious food to sustain a healthy diet.
• As members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, we recognize that food loss and waste (FLW) impact food availability and has economic, social, and environmental costs in the region. Addressing FLW should be designed to improve global food security, including by complementing its four dimensions: availability, access, utilization, and stability; addressing all environmental challenges, including climate change; avoiding pollution; supporting the conservation of natural resources and biodiversity; and helping achieve more sustainable and resilient agri-food systems in the region.
• We recognize that there are a variety of approaches to understanding and addressing FLW that may lead to improved outcomes. Therefore, it is essential to promote multisectoral, context-specific, voluntary, and scientific approaches to addressing FLW that may differ locally and regionally. In our efforts to prevent and reduce FLW, we encourage economies to continue implementing a rules-based, non-discriminatory, open, fair, inclusive, equitable, and transparent multilateral trading system, with the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its core, to ensure WTO compliant policies and measures, that agricultural goods and services flow as smoothly and predictably as possible.
• The following “Principles for Preventing and Reducing Food Loss and Waste in the Asia-Pacific Region” (Principles) support our individual and collective efforts to put in place and achieve what we endorsed in the APEC Food Security Roadmap Towards 2030 and its Implementation Plan, specifically action 17.e), and the APEC Putrajaya Vision 2040 and its associated Aotearoa Plan of Action, under a holistic, systemic and inclusive approach, recognizing there is no one-size-fits-all solution.

Principle 1: Strengthen institutional frameworks

• To prevent and reduce FLW, it is necessary to strengthen institutions responsible for the agri-food system, including through capacity-building for related stakeholders, in order to design and implement appropriate, efficient and effective policies and approaches to address this problem.
• It is also important to coordinate the domestic measures on preventing and reducing FLW with international commitments on food security, nutrition, environmental challenges, including climate change, circular economy, trade, or other relevant issues, as appropriate; and in this way, avoid negative impacts and duplication of efforts to address FLW.

Principle 2: Promote public-private partnerships and coordination with other relevant stakeholders

• Recognizing the important role of the private sector, APEC economies should work with relevant stakeholders, including the public sector, international organizations, civil society organizations, and academia, as appropriate, to develop and implement context-specific measures that prevent and reduce FLW throughout the stages of the food supply chain.

Principle 3: Foster research, innovation, technology, and digitalization

• It is important to strengthen frameworks that facilitate research, innovation, digitalization, and technology adoption to promote, develop, and implement appropriate and relevant solutions for the prevention and reduction of FLW. These solutions should be applicable and affordable for improving the productivity, sustainability, and efficiency of agri-food systems. We encourage APEC economies to share context-specific best practices in this regard.

Principle 4: Promote capacity building, awareness, and education

• APEC economies should raise awareness of FLW and strengthen the capacities of food supply chain actors on the importance of preventing and reducing FLW, and consider FLW options to address this problem from a multisectoral approach.

Principle 5: Improve data collection and knowledge management

• APEC economies should consider developing or promoting new mechanisms or utilizing existing ones for the voluntary collection, generation, and systematization of data and information by relevant stakeholders to support the quantification and tracking of FLW across the food supply chain.

Principle 6: Create an enabling environment to promote investment in physical infrastructure

Principle 7: Promote food rescue and donation

• While adequate access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food remains a basic need for all people, we acknowledge the role that food rescue and donation can play, particularly in supporting people in vulnerable situations.
• Therefore, APEC economies are encouraged to adopt policies and mechanisms for rescuing and donating safe and nutritious food that would otherwise be lost or wasted, to be distributed to people in vulnerable situations within their jurisdictions. This approach can reduce FLW while contributing to lower levels of food insecurity. Establishing transparent practices and food safety measures, in coordination with actors in the food supply chain, can encourage safe and effective food rescue and donation.
• APEC economies are encouraged to communicate the importance and justification of food rescue to the general population, in line with each economy’s specific priorities for managing FLW. This includes highlighting its benefits for alleviating food insecurity, as well as its economic and environmental advantages.