The aim of this paper is to present data on the scale of food waste in the meat sector and to emphasize the need to disseminate measures to reduce the number of losses in this sector. The article discusses food loss and waste in the meat sector as a current, widespread and serious problem. The Web of Science database was searched up to March 2021 to find publications reporting studies of the food loss and waste with particular emphasis on the meat sector. Due to the relatively high consumption of meat and meat products, the level of losses during production and of product waste by consumers in consumer stage becomes significant. It is estimated that as much as 23% of production in the meat sector is lost and wasted. The largest share is generated at the consumption level, representing 64% of the total food waste, followed by manufacturing (20%), distribution (12%) and primary production and post-harvest (3.5%). Data on food losses and wastage in the meat sector are very limited, and at the same time the production of meat and meat products is characterized by an unfavorable impact on the environment (meat has the highest emissions per kilogram of food compared to other food products), which requires rational management of these products in the entire chain (production, processing, transport and consumer stage). Therefore, determining the size and causes of formation as well as the methods of reducing food losses and food waste throughout the meat sector is important both for economic and environmental reasons. The idea behind food loss and waste reduction should be as an opportunity to improve efficiency within businesses, redirect food to those who need it and reduce environmental impacts.

Reducing food wastage is one of the challenges in achieving global food security and transforming current food systems. Since human nutrition is closely dependent on cereal production, research was undertaken aimed at understanding the food losses in the baking and confectionery industry (BCI) in Poland, in particular at determining the volume, reasons and ways of reducing losses, identifying possibly all of the reasons for losses in BCI using the Ishikawa 5M + 1E diagram and determining the level of significance and probability of risk of food losses in the analysed sector. Two research methods were used. Quantitative data were collected using the mass balance method from five businesses that served as case studies. Qualitative data were collected through individual in-depth interviews with 17 industry experts. The companies’ average daily losses ranged from 0.8 to 6.4 tons, representing 9.7 to 14.4% of production volume, including 10.4–13.4% of bread losses and 6.8–24.4% of fresh pastry losses. The highest losses were generated by transport departments and these were exclusively retail returns. Following the Ishikawa concept, 31 primary and 94 secondary reasons for food losses were identified. Using the probability of loss risk, a toolkit for loss prevention and mitigation across all departments within businesses (raw materials magazine, production section, final product magazine and final product transport) and a set of horizontal tools were identified, including specialised training for employees and activities in several areas, e.g., technical status and production technology, organisation and planning, logistics and sales and cooperation with retail. This study, conducted in Poland, offers valuable results for developing programmes and strategies to prevent and manage food losses in BCI. Many of the solutions proposed in both toolkits can bring economic benefits without involving additional high costs.

Food loss is a serious global problem, particularly in developed countries; in the European Union, approximately 20% of the food produced each year is wasted. Food losses occur in the entire agri-food chain, starting from primary production, through post-harvest operations and storage, processing, distribution and consumption. The paper presents the results of studies on the evaluation of food losses at the stage of primary production (agricultural production) of consumer cereals in Poland in the context of their impact on the environment and ensuring food security. It was shown that the amount of food losses in the first link of the agri-food chain in the cereal sector in 2017–2018 was on average 219.6 thousand tonnes per year. The level of losses per farm averaged 0.91 tonnes, which accounted for 1.7% of total production. The weight of consumer grain waste at the primary production stage, calculated on the basis of the results of food losses and taking into account the grain management methods, amounted to an average of 117.24 thousand tonnes/year, which accounted for 23.08% of all food waste generated at the primary production stage. By relating the amount of food losses in the primary production of consumer cereals in Poland to the assumed emission factor, it was calculated that food losses at the stage of production of consumer cereals during a year are responsible for the emission of 0.608 million tonnes of CO₂.

The achievement of climate neutrality in the European Union by 2050 will not be possible solely through a reduction in fossil fuels and the development of energy generation from renewable sources. Large-scale implementation of various technologies is necessary, including bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), carbon capture and storage (CCS), and carbon capture and utilisation (CCU), as well as industrial electrification, the use of hydrogen, the expansion of electromobility, low-emission agricultural practices, and afforestation. This research is devoted to an analysis of BECCS as a negative emissions technology (NET) and the assessment of its implementation impact upon the possibility of achieving climate neutrality in the EU. The modelling approach utilises tools developed within the LIFE Climate CAKE PL project and includes the MEESA energy model and the d-PLACE CGE economic model. This article identifies the scope of the required investment in generation capacity and the amount of electricity production from BECCS necessary to meet the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets in the EU, examining the technology’s impact on the overall system costs and marginal abatement costs (MACs). The modelling results confirm the key role of BECCS technology in achieving EU climate goals by 2050.

The paper provides the results of the inventory of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from road transport in Poland over the period 1990–2017. To estimate GHGs’ emission from road transport, a standardized methodology was applied, consistent with 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories and EEA/EMEP Emission Inventory Guidebook 2019, as well as the COPERT 5 software. In the analysis, emissions of fossil carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide were taken into account. Emissions of all considered GHGs were converted to equivalent carbon dioxide. Throughout the subsequent years of emission inventory, emissions of all GHGs revealed an increasing trend, except for methane. The main cause underlying this increase is the dynamic development of motorization in Poland. Thus, GHGs’ emissions were analyzed, taking into account the number of road vehicles and the intensity of their use. An increase in the average specific distance emission was found for fossil carbon dioxide (by ca. 5%) and for nitrous oxide (by ca. 10%), while for methane, there was a decrease (by more than 150%). The GHGs’ emissions from road transport in Poland could be significantly lower if more emphasis was placed on the use of fuels from renewable energy sources.

The paper provides the results of the inventory of pollutants hazardous to the health of living organisms, emitted by road transport in Poland between 1990 and 2017. For estimating pollutant emissions from road transport, a standardized methodology was applied, consistent with the guidance of EEA/EMEP Emission Inventory Guidebook 2019 and the COPERT 5 software. The following substances were analyzed: carbon monoxide (CO), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter size fractions (total suspended particles—TSP, PM₁₀, PM_2.5). For the pollutants, emission values averaged over the distance travelled by the road fleet (average specific distance emission) were determined. The results obtained indicated that between 1990 and 2017 the annual pollutant emissions from road vehicles in Poland had an increasing trend concerning TSP (74%), PM₁₀ (64%), PM_2.5 (52%) and NOx (25%), while the corresponding emissions had a decreasing trend for CO (−117%) and NMVOC (−85%). However, a clear downward trend was found for the average specific distance emissions of all substances throughout the subsequent inventory years: TSP (−28%), PM₁₀ (−100%), PM_2.5 (−91%), NOx (−84%), CO (−208%) and NMVOC (−173%), which is due to the dynamic progress in the technological advancement of road vehicles.