V.MFS.0457 - Whole of Beef Supply Chain Mapping Final Report
Approximation of beef meat losses suggests around 6% of beef meat intended for human consumption may potentially be lost between livestock receipt and retail door.
| Project start date: | 19 May 2021 |
| Project end date: | 26 June 2023 |
| Publication date: | 29 November 2023 |
| Project status: | Completed |
| Livestock species: | Grain-fed Cattle, Grass-fed Cattle, Sheep, Goat, Lamb |
| Relevant regions: | National |
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Summary
Food loss and waste (FLW) research has increasingly considered systemic characteristics of supply chains, including conflicting interests, overlaps and redundancies, competition-related practices and behaviour and commercial contradictions and trade-offs as potential causes for intended and unintended creation of FLW at the production stage. This systemic view proposes that FLW does not only originate from single firms or distinct supply chain stages but reflects broader settings of supply chains that result in a form of 'co-creation' of food waste.
Objectives
The aim of the project was to generate a clearer picture of beef meat losses and waste, with three main objectives:
1. Identify the main sources of losses for each individual supply chain stage (primary, secondary, tertiary processing, and refrigerated transport and distribution) and fractions that go to food waste destinations.
2. Engage with supply chain actors to identify potential causes and solutions of losses.
3. Approximate the amounts and potential costs of losses.
Key findings
For tertiary processing, opportunities for loss recovery are more limited, resulting in food waste generation, but the total amount is expected to be low due to relatively low inclusion of beef ingredients in prepared foods. Losses in distribution (particularly product rejected at retail door due to packaging or temperature maintenance failures) were estimated to be the most significant.
Benefits to industry
Many of the solutions for meat loss reduction call for increased trust and collaboration between industry partners along the supply chain. The benefits of this are less recognised and more difficult to quantify (Richards et al., 2021).
MLA action
No further engagement proposed. Phase 2 MLA withdrawn.
Future research
Not recommended as this falls outside the MLA scope and is more aligned with AMPC processors.
More information
| Project manager: | Alicia Waddington |
| Contact email: | reports@mla.com |
