Agrifood systems require sustained growth to maintain food security for the global population, while facing unprecedented pressure from challenges of climate change and resource depletion. In this context, evaluating, holistically planning and transitioning to circularity will be critical to improve sustainability and face those challenges. While circular economy initiatives offer considerable promise in improving sustainability and increasing performance, these benefits are juxtaposed by the increasing evidence that contaminants, physical, microbiological or chemical, can get introduced, persist and potentially lead to unsafe food. Therefore, protecting food safety is key for the success of transitioning our current linear agrifood system to a more sustainable and circular one. This report provides a synthesis of current and emerging evidence of food safety risks in circular agrifood initiatives, with an aim to understand challenges and opportunities to manage and enhance food safety. Food safety has to be an equal performance indicator for any transition, requiring addressing data gaps, focusing research efforts and exploring opportunities for improving food safety outcomes. All parties in the agrifood system need to proactively do their part to ensure agrifood systems develop, by harnessing the innovation in this area, and at the same time produce safe food.

Agrifood systems are undergoing a transformation with the aim to provide safer, more affordable, and healthier diets for all, produced in a sustainable manner while delivering just and equitable livelihoods: a key to achieving the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. However, this transformation needs to be executed in the global context of major challenges facing the food and agriculture sectors, with drivers such as climate change, population growth, urbanization, and natural resources depletion compounding these challenges. Food safety is a keystone to agrifood systems and all food safety actors need to keep pace with the ongoing transformation while preparing to navigate the potential threats, disruptions, and challenges that may arise. Foresight in food safety facilitates the proactive identification of drivers and related trends, both within and outside agrifood systems, that have implications for food safety and therefore also for consumer health, the national economy, and international trade. Early identification and evaluation of drivers and trends promote strategic planning and preparedness to take advantage of emerging opportunities and address challenges in food safety. In this publication, the FAO Food Safety Foresight programme provides an overview of the major global drivers and trends by describing their implications for food safety in particular and for agrifood systems by extrapolation. The various drivers and trends reported include climate change, changing consumer behaviour and preferences, new food sources and production systems, technological advances, microbiome, circular economy, food fraud, among others. The intended audience for this publication is broad – from the policymakers, academia, food business operators, private sector, to all of us, the consumers.

Global population by 2050 is predicted to be over 9 billion and accordingly, the production systems will demolish about 140 billion tons per year of minerals, ores, fossil fuels and biomass, i.e., thrice of the current need, and the food production itself has to be doubled. Optimized resource usage, lifecycle management, and reduced carbon emission have become a priority for agri-food businesses today, and circular economy (CE) helps for a sustainable and flexible way to grow without exhausting primary materials, and it thinks beyond recycling and resource usage. The word CE best relates to the resource and efficiency management, 6Rs, closed-loop production systems, zero waste and lifecycle engineering, reduced overconsumption of resources and waste generation, enriched system redesign and business model innovation, thereby leading to sustainable development goals. In this light, the book calls for theoretical and empirically sound contributions that are focused on the different aspects of the circular economy, 6R’s, sustainable production and consumption, closed-loop systems, etc. in the agri-food sector.

This volume presents a transdisciplinary approach to implementing a circular economy in international business. Written by global experts, this book provides a detailed and professional focus on issues that must be improved in order to successfully implement a circular economy in a variety of industries. The book begins with a discussion of the theoretical aspects of circular economy and the challenges of going from theory to practice. The following chapters present case studies on the circular economy in different sectors of international business such as food systems, mineral processing, water management, energy process, waste management, the cement industry, and 3D printing. Issues such as the role of SMEs in the circular economy, and the progress towards circular economy 3.0, and strategies for teaching the circular economy are also discussed. The volume ends with a critique of the concept of circular economy and suggestions for future research avenues. Written with multiple stakeholders in mind, this volume will be of interest to researchers and students of economics, sustainability, international business, and management as well as industry professionals and governments working towards establishing a circular economy in their fields and jurisdictions.

Securing a sustainable supply chain is crucial for business and the future of humanity. Intending to lower waste and carbon emissions, businesses are investing more money in sustainability efforts. However, sustainability measures that might save costs, improve forecasting, and optimize business operations are frequently disregarded, especially during the post-pandemic era. The Handbook of Research on Designing Sustainable Supply Chains to Achieve a Circular Economy analyzes various approaches and strategies for developing sustainable supply chain capabilities to achieve circular economies; builds and develops models, frameworks, and theoretical concepts by focusing on the role of a sustainable supply chain leading to a circular economy; and provides a platform where new concepts and plans for managing sustainable supply chains in the post-pandemic era with the aid of Industry 4.0 as enablers are discussed. Covering key topics such as tourism, healthcare, transportation, and governance, this major reference work is ideal for industry professionals, government officials, business owners, managers, entrepreneurs, policymakers, scholars, researchers, academicians, instructors, and students.

This book explores how the circular economy influences product design in today’s business and society. Drawing on contributions from a wide range of expert thinkers, this volume assesses the existing approaches, strategies and tools which facilitate socially and environmentally responsible production and consumption systems. It then goes on to highlight the ways in which the circular economy conceptual framework could be implemented effectively at both micro (product policy) and macro (sustainable consumption) levels in order to alter the industrial landscape and increase its interconnectedness with materials and scarce resources. Highlighting the pros and cons of transitioning to this new model, the book also cautions that it will only be made possible via significant behavior change at both industry and consumer levels. Sustainable Products in the Circular Economy will be of great interest to students and scholars of sustainable manufacturing, sustainable consumption, corporate social responsibility and business ethics. It will also be relevant to industry professionals whose work dovetails with these areas.

FOOD SAFETY, PLASTICS AND SUSTAINABILITY A unique book by a well-known polymer scientist on a subject that is trending in plastics engineering. This book focuses on plastics for food safety, materials, chemicals and methods, as well as the applications of these polymers. The book begins with a chapter on food safety. Here, food security and the issues of migration of substances from packaging into the corresponding food, as well as the impact of microplastics on humans and the environment are discussed. In the next chapter, regulations, standards, and specifications are detailed. In another chapter, testing methods, such as risk assessment, freshness testing of food, and food colorants are discussed. In the chapter entitled “Food Packaging”, the methods that can be used for these issues are given as well as the special materials for food packaging. The chapter on materials includes a discussion on nanocomposites, biopolymers, microplastics, and edible films. This is followed by chapters on additives and applications, such as functional food applications. The final chapter covers the identification of the materials, the methods for recycling, plastic waste generation, and post-consumer polyolefins. Three separate indexes ensure a reader/user-friendly experience.