Sustaining The Food Chain

food-chain-stacking-cups1-1024x546Picture source: rovingfiddlehead.com

BY: NABIL NASR

INDUSTRIAL ENGINEER Volume 44, Number 12

In the production, production waste most often is identified with chemicals, metals, plastics, and other unwanted by products. In this casewe focus on food, Many waste could be avoided the principles of sustainable production were integrated into myriad processes extending from farm to fork. Lack of coordination is one of the problems in sustainable food production. A promising approach to resolving this dilemma is the cluster concept. Essentially, this brings together all interconnected entities in a defined agricultural region including farms, transportation, food processors, packers, and equipment manufacturers, waste to energy providers, distributors and retail outlets to increase overall productivity and competitiveness. A recent program led by the golisano try to illustrate how this works. They are partnered with development groups and universities to form the finger lakes food processing luster initiative, a consortium that includes farmers, winery owners, grocery stores, agricultural equipment manufacturers, food canners, bottlers and others. The ultimate goals are economic development, job creation and increased competitiveness through application of sustainable production practices. Example, disposal of wooden “totes” lined with plastics, that can be solved by using shipping bags to nearby company that recycles them into oil for use in generating energy. In a time of rising food prices and a steadily increasing world population that must be fed, reducing food production waste and raising efficiency is vital in the farm to fork chain. Based on what we are learning from the cluster, this approach can be a good step in that direction.

Evaluation

In this journal, they explain about reducing production waste is important in our era. In this case they took an example, an issue of plastic that arent useful after being used for shipment, tomatoes and tomato paste. The plastic is a potential sanitation problem when stored, so they sent the plastics to a nearby company that recycles them into oil for use in generating energy.

There is a system that can be identified, first is conceptual system, in this case they design to improve their system, some production waste was recycled into oils, so there is a conceptual system (Design). The second is the human made system, the engineering made system to improve production. Last is Dynamic system, the production waste is varied, plastic, chemicals, metals and the relative amounts.

by:

  1. Arci (1701312205)
  2. Kelvin (1701312464)
  3. Kevin. Y (1701352682)
  4. Lidya Guestine (1701344081)
  5. Chris Michie (1701308460)
  6. Diana Marcelina (1701357203)