From November 18 to 26, takes place the European week to raise awareness about waste reduction.

Researchers at the UNESCO Chair in Life Cycle and Climate Change ESCI-UPF’s are organising the workshop “La huella de nuestra alimentación. ¿Conoces su impacto?”, next November 24.

ESCI-UPF will host the workshop open to the general public, from 11.30 to 13 h.

Next Friday November 24, as a part of the European Week for Waste Reductionactivities, from November 18 to 26, Gonzalo Blanca and Laura Batlle, researchers at the Chairare organising the workshop “La huella de nuestra alimentación. ¿Conoces su impacto?” (“Our food's footprint. Did you know its impact?"). The aim of the activity is to raise awareness throughout the society about the impacts of our food waste and carbon footprint, from a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) perspective, with a special focus on the waste produced by airplanes’ catering. The School of International Business ESCI-UPF will host the activity, from 11.30 to 13 h. 

In order to participate in the workshop, previous inscription is required. The number of participants is limited to 30.

“La huella de nuestra alimentación. ¿Conoces su impacto?” 
During the Chair’s workshop, participants will be asked to imagine that they are travelling on an airplane where they will have to choose one of the four menus offered to lunch. There is a menu for meat lovers with milk products, another based on chicken, a mediterranean menu that combines vegetables and fish, and, finally, a vegetarian option. “The participants, imagining that they are travelling on an airplane, will have to choose which menu they prefer and decide whether they will eat the entire menu or leave a part of it. If that's the case, what percentage of the menu would they leave on the plate?”, explains Blanca.

In the second part of the workshop, participants will be invited to delve deeply into the scientific projects led by researchers at the Chair. Gonzalo Blanca, PhD Student of the Waste Management Research Line, studies the airplanes’ catering waste and how it could be managed to produce as minimum damage as possible, from a life cycle assessment perspective. Laura Batlle, PhD Student of the Agro-alimentary Research Line, evaluates the Greenhouse-Gas Emissions from the annual food consumed per person within the parameters of the Spanish average. In the future, the researcher will investigate both healthy and environmentally friendly diets.

Continuously, the participants will receive a carbon footprint inventory associated with the food products, prepared by Batlle, due to discover which menu is the most sustainable one.

Finally, researchers will open a discussion session aimed at encouraging public to reflect on which food products, through their life cycle, produce the worst impact on the environment. And also to find new ways of reducing airplanes’ catering waste.

To do the inscription task, send an email to the researcher Gonzalo Blanca:gonzalo.blanca@esci.upf.edu

The European Week for Waste Reduction’s logo. Credits: Gencat.cat