THE POTENTIAL OF THE CIRCULAR BIOECONOMY TO REDUCE THE WASTE OF FOOD IN ITALY

Abstract

The purpose of the Thesis is to assess the potential of the Circular Bioeconomy to reduce the waste of food in Italy and discuss if the country is fully exploiting it. Food waste represents a serious problem for Italy and constitutes one of the most disrespectful and unsustainable human activities that are impacting on the planet. The Circular Bioeconomy has become a pivotal approach adopted to face the current planetary challenges and this research directly relates it to its capability to reduce food waste. By applying a bottom-down approach in the Multi-Level Perspective on socio-technical transitions, it is demonstrated that Italy is moving towards a transition of its current regime, aimed at achieving an institutionalized dominant design where food waste is eliminated, through the national Strategy for the Bioeconomy. However, the criticisms moved to the Strategy concern its focus only on the technological dimensions of food waste reduction while ignoring the importance of the practices in reducing and preventing it. The Circular Bioeconomy potential, instead, comprehends the manipulation and influence of practices throughout the whole food chain while respecting the waste hierarchy, permitting to avoid the rebound effects that can derive from the adoption of a technological perspective only. Italy, at least for now and leaving space for future developments and analysis, is thus failing in exploiting the full potential of the Circular Bioeconomy and in moving towards a completely sustainable socio-technical transition.