Food Waste and its Management in Restaurants in Ibadan North Local Government Area, Oyo State, Nigeria

Food waste in the foodservice sector is currently regarded as an emerging issue of public concern particularly in developing countries like Nigeria. In order to understand the extent of this problem in Ibadan North Local Government Area (LGA), a descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted. A representative sample (70) of restaurant managers were interviewed, using a semi-structured questionnaire, on their knowledge, attitudes, and practices towards food waste management system. Purposive sampling was used to select eight (8) restaurants for compositional analysis of food waste generated for a period of one week. Results showed that 52.9% of the respondents had satisfactory knowledge of proper waste management. Moreover, the respondents showed significantly positive attitude (mean score of 3.66±0.65) towards proper waste management system. However, their practices of food waste management were found to be poor. Mean daily food waste disposal from all the restaurants ranged from 6.0–33.6 kg with yearly disposal that ranged from 2,177.9 to 12,215.7 kg (2.2–12.2 tonnes). The sample average for the study locations was estimated at 5.8 t per year. With average of 30 consumers per day, the per capita disposal was estimated at 24 t/capita/year. Compositional analysis also showed that waste generated were in the order of preparation waste (45%), spoilage waste (21%), and consumer’s plate waste (34%). The results showed that poor waste management practices of restaurant managers play significant role in waste generation in restaurant operation. Hence, improved waste management practices such as food waste recycling should be adopted.