Food

Andy Low Yi Soon, Chaudhari Parimal Prashant, Chou Han Xian Aaron, Faruq Yunus Alsagoff, Yeo Yak Hang

Academic Advisor: Dr. Florence Ng

Over the past ten years, the food waste recycling rate has been stagnated between 10%- 16%, with significant portions of food waste still being incinerated (NEA, 2018). Composting can be used as an effective method to recycle daily food waste from Singaporean households (Khoo et al., 2010). Upon conducting a preliminary survey, our team has discovered that most households dump their food waste indiscriminately, with many respondents citing smell and lack of composting knowledge as their primary reasons for not composting. The experiment aims to provide an effective and efficient method of composting tailored towards alleviating concerns regarding performing composting indoors. Our group will explore two types of composting methods, black soldier fly larvae, and blue Malaysian worms. Using specific amounts and types of food waste, we will reach a conclusion regarding which method is best suited to the household environment. We promoted these methods to households through the distribution of instructional materials to increase the composting knowledge of our target population. Finally, a post-experiment survey was conducted to measure changes in individuals’ perceptions and receptiveness towards adopting composting practices at home, which was used to gauge the effectiveness of our project.

Keywords: Composting, Food Waste

Jason Ongkowijaya, Joash Lim Shen, Mabel Khaw Shi Qi, Sneha Sunil Pillai, Yew Kai Zhe

Academic Advisor: Mr. Lim Cheng Puay

Food waste in Singapore has risen by over 40% over the last decade, amounting to over 800,000 tons per year. However, only 16% of this volume of waste is recycled. Thus, there is a need to increase the food waste recycling rate through innovative and inexpensive means. Black Soldier Fly (BSF) waste processing is a growing area of research due to their ability to eat up to 4 times their size, low cost, and space efficiency. The aim of our project is to increase youths’ willingness to adopt Black Soldier Fly food waste recycling in their respective homes. Our group conducted a pre and post survey on youth aged between 15-30 years on Instagram, with an educational campaign between the release of both surveys.  We also created a prototype of a small scale BSF food waste recycling kit and conducted focus groups to test its feasibility as a household recycling system. We received feedback from BSF researchers on our prototype which enabled us to create a more efficient and feasible system. Our survey findings have shown that educating consumers on how the BSF process occurs results in an increase in receptiveness to adopting BSF recycling. More research and information is needed to be shared among the public before we can effectively implement BSF recycling on a larger scale.

Keywords: food waste, waste management; black soldier flies

Gladys Tan Shi Xuan, Kelvin Harris, Low Jun Yang Leroy, Nadya Devani, Oh Won-Jun

Academic Advisor: Dr. Chua Siew Chin

According to National Environmental Agency, approximately 800 tonnes of food waste was produced in Singapore in 2018 and only 16% was recycled. Food waste is also predicted to continue to increase with the growth of Singapore’s population. However, even with elaborate food waste strategies, the issue of food waste persists and majority of the food waste contributed by households could have been prevented at the beginning. Households are also found to be one of the main contributing factors to increasing food waste. Our project aims to nudge changes to households’ behaviours by raising awareness of cooking with food scraps, and studying households’ receptivity to cooking with food scraps. We created a consolidated web page that consists of self-created videos, text recipes and supplementary videos to showcase ways to cook with food scraps. We then assess viewers’ level of understanding and receptivity to cooking with food scraps through a feedback survey. Our results shown that majority of the respondents found our web page to be useful in raising their awareness of cooking with food scraps. Majority of the respondents are also receptive to cooking and consuming food scraps. In short, the use of video and text recipes on a website appears to be a feasible approach to increase household’s awareness and receptivity of cooking with food scraps, which would alleviate the problem of food waste in Singapore.

Keywords: Food, Food Scraps, Household Food Waste

Muhamad Amir Thaqif Shah S/O Muhd Iskandar Shah Ta, Thanmaya Sivadasan, Wong Jin Fu Shaun, Zhang Xiaoyu, Zhao Wenqi

Academic Advisor: Prof. Adekunle Adeyeye

In the increasingly high-profile battle against food wastage, a prominent culprit would probably be surprising to many—schools. Data collected by past GEQ groups (GEQ Group 31, 2016; GEQ Group G01-B, 2017) demonstrate that a noticeable percentage of food waste come from school meal plans, with an estimated 15% of the meals prepared in Ridge View Residential College (RVRC) being thrown away because they are unserved. As such, our group aims to design a solution to better match meal demand and supply in RVRC through the development of a digital platform that allows residents to pre-indicate their meal choices. Our methodology comprises an online survey evaluating user receptivity towards our mobile application, as well as a beta testing period in weeks 10 – 11. After which, we will analyse the findings from our beta test in order to evaluate the feasibility of our prototype. Preliminary results indicate that an overwhelming majority of RVRC residents were open to the concept of a new and more efficient mobile app system where they could pre-indicate their meals up to 7 days in advance. This entails that there is an existing market of users who would be willing to participate in our trial tests and thus drive adoption in the future. However, due to the time-intensive nature of our mobile application development, we will only be able to do our evaluation in week 11 and therefore will only be able to draw conclusions later in the semester.

Keywords: Food, Food Waste, Mobile App, Mobile Application

Lim Yu Ling Victoria, Muhammad Faryz Bin Khazid, Ong Jing Ting, Sathappan Aishwarya, Tan Yugin

Academic Advisor: Prof. Adekunle Adeyeye

Reducing food waste in higher education institutes is worth investigating because food wasted in such institutions is significant. We aim to launch our measures in RVRC and eventually expand to other residential colleges in NUS if they are successful. Our goal is to tackle food wastage through both a digital platform and physical measures, by reducing both the amount of food that is cooked but not taken by diners, and the leftovers generated by diners at the end of meal services. We obtained data from caterer Chartwells on the amount of food waste before and after our trial, and conducted a survey on food waste patterns in RVRC to determine the main causes of food wastage. In the survey, nearly half the respondents mentioned that they fail to finish the food on their plate “sometimes” or more frequently. Of those, over half cited portion sizes being too large as a main reason for their plate waste, while over 75% indicated that quality of food was also a factor. Based on these results, we implemented strategies to tackle both significant causes of wastage. We developed a Telegram chatbot to provide an improved channel for diners to provide feedback on their meals. We also introduced a self-serve rice station for diners to adjust their rice portions based on their needs, and allowed free takeaway of meals during the end of a meal service to reduce leftovers. Our trial produced promising results for self-serve rice stations as an immediate means of reducing food waste, and for the Telegram chatbot as a way to improve the quality of dining hall food, thereby reducing wastage caused by diner dissatisfaction.

Keywords: Food, Food Waste, Dining Hall, Chatbot, Telegram

Koh Kiang Ee Kenji, Lim En-Lye Perrie, Loh Wei Kiat, Tan Wei Hao Jonathan, Tay Sheryl

Academic Advisor: Ms. Sadaf Ansari

Globally, one-third of food produced for human consumption is wasted (Gustafsson, Cederberg, Sonesson and Emanuelsson, 2013). In Singapore, food waste is also a rising concern with an alarming 40% increase over the past decade (NEA, 2018). Strategies employed for the producer side of food waste have yielded positive results in tackling this issue (Oliver Wyman, 2014). In contrast, efforts expended on the consumer side to reduce their plate waste were mostly rudimentary and devoid of systematic evaluation (Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition, 2012). The purpose of our study was to augment the current strategies of plate waste reduction with choice architecture principles in the Ridge View Residential College (RVRC) dining hall.

Our preliminary field research and survey of Yale-NUS current plate waste monitoring system showed that individuals are more compelled to reduce their waste when comparative figures are presented. Therefore, we implemented a waste monitoring system in RVRC for three weeks that utilised norm-based messaging and community approach to nudge individuals to reduce plate waste. The system displayed an individual’s plate waste amount against two other comparative figures: a constantly updated average plate waste amount and the target plate waste amount for the community. Collected data showed that our system effectively

raised the consciousness of plate waste in the RVRC community because of significantly reduced overall plate waste. Based on the results obtained in our study, we recommend incorporating a comparative plate waste display across NUS campus dining halls to reduce food waste by students.

Keywords: Waste, Food, Responsible Consumption

Andrew Yeo Jung Yeat, Chloe Lau Jia Yee, Eng Wee Long, Kong Qi Herng, Tan Jia Le Damien

Academic Advisor: Mr. Lim Cheng Puay

The issue of food waste is detrimental to the environment and “if food waste were a country, it would be the third largest producer of greenhouse gases in the world” (Royte, 2016). Furthermore, an estimated 40% of the food losses occur at the final consumer level consumed (Gustavsson, Cederberg, Sonesson, Otterdijk, & Meybeck, 2011). This issue can thus be mitigated through the collective effort of individual consumers. As consumers do not realize the level of food waste generated (De Coverly, McDonagh, O’Malley, & Patterson, 2008), it is therefore imperative to raise awareness on this issue and inculcate a culture of recycling food waste. Our project explored households’ awareness of food wastage and their methods of managing food waste through our survey on consumers (of various ages). 85% of the respondents discard their fruit peels instead of recycling them. In response to this, we conducted workshops to teach consumers how to produce a food enzyme solution. We reached out to RVRC residents and the members of the public and educated them on the uses of food enzymes and the method of developing a food enzyme solution. Results from the workshops showed that than 97% of our participants (n=76) were willing to recycle their fruit peels. The participants also became more cognizant of the existing food wastage issues. Moreover, respondents were willing to share what they learned from our workshops with their family and friends. Thus, this suggests the success of our outreach as participants are spreading the idea of garbage enzyme through word of mouth. In conclusion, we have successfully met our project objective of encouraging households to use garbage enzyme as a substitute for commercial cleaning agents, thereby demonstrating the possibility of up-scaling garbage enzyme making and thereby further spreading this idea to more people.

Keywords: Food waste; upcycling; waste management

Nair Tania Santosh, Rachel Mark Yuen Yee, Sunaga Ryuto, Yap Hui Xuan Rachel

Academic Advisor: Mr. Lim Cheng Puay

We live in a society based on linear metabolism that has led us to deplete our resources at an unsustainable rate. Singapore has designated the year 2019 towards becoming a zero-waste country and a circular metabolism system can aid in this. Even in RVRC, a residential college based on sustainable living concepts, residents are still attuned to living in abundance with a throw-away mentality. Hence, this project aims to investigate the feasibility of producing fruit detergents created from fruit waste in RVRC, to implement the circular metabolism system.

The project followed a two-way data collection involving surveys and physical data collection. These allowed for the analysis of the amount of fruit waste generated in RVRC, and how feasible it is to substitute commercial detergents with fruit detergents. 50 participants partook in pre- and post- fruit enzyme exposure surveys to understand user engagement with the enzyme. A week-long study of the fruit wastage in the college dining hall was also conducted to estimate the quantity of fruit waste required to produce sufficient detergent for the RC.

The amount of waste collected from the dining hall per week is about 7.8 kg. By collecting the fruit waste for a month, we are able to make sufficient fruit detergent that sustains 600 residents for one semester. As such, the results have shown that there is potential in making a sustainable system that produces fruit detergent from the fruit waste in RVRC to substitute currently used detergents for all the residents.

Keywords: Food waste; circular metabolism; upcycling; Waste management

Goh Rui Zhi, Jin Jiayu, Joshua Woon Zhi Xian, Nigelle Leo Yuwen, Zhao Caiheng

Academic Advisor: Mr. Lim Cheng Puay

Durians are huge delicacies in South East Asia, with Thailand and Malaysia being the biggest exporters of the fruit. Durians are also starting to gain attention in other Asia countries such as China. Due to this rising prominence, the demand is booming. Thailand, the world’s leading exporter of fresh durian, exports 402,661 metric tons of durian in 2016 alone. (UNCTS, 2016). This directly generates tremendous amounts of waste as on average, 70% of the durian fruit is inedible and thrown away (Cheok, 2016). When durian waste is incinerated or left to decompose, large amounts of methane gas is produced, directly contributing to global warming. Our project explores ways to mitigate such ongoing environmental damage, focusing on finding alternative uses for durian husks to end the life cycle loop of the fruit. We analysed the current life cycle assessments of durians and studied the chemical properties of the fruit, with the possibility of upcycling these contents to substitute disposable packaging in mind. Using NUS campus as a platform for our case study, we conducted a quantitative survey to examine 1) student’s perception and awareness towards the current issue of durian wastage and 2) their receptiveness towards biodegradable products made from durian husks. Our results highlighted a significant lack in awareness of the environmental damage caused by the above problem among consumers of durian. The respondents were also supportive of the idea of biodegradable packaging made from upcycling high fibrous fruits to substitute current plastic ones. Creating such a substitute will directly reduce the environmental impacts and simultaneously educate the public of the critical issue of food wastage.

Keywords: Food waste; Responsible consumption; Circular economy; Upcycling

Guan Qin, Lim Wei Qian Willy, Loh Kwan Teng Sophia, Tasya Graciela, Tay Jia Hui Rheia

Academic Advisor: Mr. Lim Cheng Puay

We aim to raise awareness of the importance of food security and wastage in Singapore among the younger generation. Food issues are significant, but relatively unknown and deemed less important in Singapore, given that Singaporeans have easy access to food all the time (Koh, 2018). As such, the main target audience was university youths, who have the highest potential to effect important changes in the future. With that in mind, an educational role-playing card game was developed, which would provide players with information on happenings related to food security and wastage that could endanger Singapore’s food source as well as tips on ways to contribute to sustainability in this aspect. After testing the game on 104 participants, 77% of the participants have gained more knowledge on the issues of food security and wastage, 64% indicated a greater interest and concern for this topic, and 78% felt that the game was engaging and fun. The game has successfully met the objective of raising awareness of the importance of food security and wastage in Singapore among the younger generation. In the long run, this game could signal the start of games as a novel way of educating students about food wastage and security.

Keywords: Educational games; food security; consumption; food waste

Gan Jia En, Kheng Yau Dong, Wang Heqiao, Tan Desheng

Academic Advisor: Dr. Florence Ng

Cooking Oil is an essential ingredient that is commonly used in food production globally, which in turn leads to a substantial consumption of cooking oil around the world. For instance, in 2016, 25 kg of edible vegetable oil was consumed per capita in China (Research and Markets, 2018). Due to the significant consumption of cooking oil, a substantial amount of used cooking oil (UCO) will be produced. Thus, our project aims to explore the idea of recycling of UCO by using it to produce soaps. Using UCO from RVRC Dining Hall, we have produced cold-process bar soap and liquid soap in a soap workroom of a local company known as Sugar and Spice. Followed by this is an interview with the dining hall cleaners to enquire about the commonly found stains on the dining hall table. We gathered that the common stains are usually drinks and sauces. We then decided to test out the UCO soaps on different type of sauces instead of drinks as sauces are more oily and hence is more difficult to be cleaned. From our evaluation, it was observed that the liquid soap and bar soap were reasonably effective in cleaning the stains. In particular, the cleaning effect of the liquid soap was comparable to a commercial kitchen cleaner which served as the control. We recommend that further research should be done to investigate the feasibility of producing the UCO soaps in a larger scale to augment its benefits towards the environment.

Keywords: Culture and Lifestyle Trends, Responsible Consumption, Food waste, Food

Amira Binti Mohamad Rafi, Badrul Amin B Mahmud, Choi Min Suk, Chua Ser Gee Vanessa, Goh Qi Rong

Academic Advisor: Dr. Chua Siew Chin

Food waste is Singapore’s fifth largest waste category and made up 11% of the 7.3 million tons of waste generated in Singapore in 2012. Pulau Semakau, Singapore’s only landfill, is expected to be completely filled by 2035 and this has created an urgent need to find a value-added use for waste products. Our group is focused on reusing fruit waste – in particular, fruit peels, which are usually discarded while the flesh of the fruit is consumed. By combining various citrus peels that contain pectin with fruits that contain oleic acid, we tried to create a biodegradable superabsorbent polymer (SAP) that, when placed in soil, enables plants to go without watering for several days. Adapting from a previous experiment (Nirghin 2016), lemon, lime, and orange were used as sources of pectin, while durian and avocado were sources of oleic acid. The effectiveness of the SAPs was assessed in three different ways: by measuring plant growth, soil moisture, as well as water absorption capabilities. We found that all our fruit peel SAPs were effective at increasing the water retention of soil. The challenge however was mould growth on the SAPs, which led us to conclude that the SAP method would only work in locations with low humidity such as an air-conditioned room. Our findings could prove useful among the gardening community in Singapore, who can create their own biodegradable SAP that aids in plant growth, while helping to reduce waste in Singapore by reusing fruit peels, which would otherwise be discarded.

Keywords: Food, Fruit Waste, Superabsorbent Polymer, Citrus, Gardening