THE EFFECTIVENESS AND CHALLENGES OF USING TECHNOLOGY TO
REDUCE FOOD WASTE IN SINGAPORE
NG WEI PENG, KELLY
NG WEI PENG, KELLY
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Abstract
Singapore is often referred to as a food paradise due to its diverse range of cuisines from
various cultures and countries. However, for a country that is known for its food,
Singaporeans also waste tonnes of it. According to the National Environmental Agency
(NEA), food waste represents around 12% of total waste generated in Singapore, which
can have far-reaching consequences on the country, including land pollution, air
pollution, and societal issues.
In response to this issue, a mobile application called Treatsure was developed with the
objective of reducing food waste by connecting consumers to hotel buffets that have
food surpluses. Hence, this dissertation seeks to examine the effectiveness and
challenges of using technology to reduce food waste in Singapore.
This is to better understand Singaporeans' attitudes and willingness to reduce food
waste by purchasing food surpluses from hotel buffets. Seeing as Treatsure is currently
only partnered with hotel buffets, it is important to look into whether such a technology
could be implemented in other eateries such as hawker centres.
Treatsure users and merchants were invited to participate in a survey to gain a better
understanding of the local situation and challenges. The results are analyzed using
several components to evaluate the experience and challenges encountered when using
the Treatsure application. Data collection also included survey results from consumers
and stallholders at selected hawker centres. Pie charts, tables, and bar graphs are used
to assess respondents' level of awareness, attitude, and support for hawker centres to
reduce food waste by redistributing food surpluses.
This dissertation concluded that the public is in favour of this initiative. However, more
needs to be done to raise their awareness of food waste and how it affects them
personally.
Keywords
Food Waste, Sustainability, Food Surpluses
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Date
2023
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Dissertation