Percorrer por autor "Scandurra, Federica"
A mostrar 1 - 6 de 6
Resultados por página
Opções de ordenação
- Assessing circularity in the agri-food sector: a case studyPublication . Scandurra, Federica; Salomone, Roberta; Caeiro, Sandra; Gulotta, Teresa Maria; Sandra Caeiro2The agri-food sector (AFS) faces challenges in providing affordable and healthy food for an increasing population. In this context, Circular Economy (CE) has gained interest as an approach to drive the food system to sustainability. However, circularity does not always lead to sustainability. The lack of a defined set of metrics to monitor CE in the sector makes it relevant to select assessment approaches that capture CE's contribution to sustainability. For this reason, the present study aims to support the dairy cooperative Fattoria della Piana, a best case of CE, in assessing its circular strategies. The study links Life cycle assessment (LCA) with circularity indicators collected in the literature. This preliminary study analyses the core of the circular exchanges of the cooperative, represented by the anaerobic digestion and combined heat and power plant (AD-CHP) plant. The study presents a valuable assessment approach for companies in the sector, highlighting the complexity of assessing CE. LCA evidenced valuable credits from avoiding mineral fertilizer and natural gas use thanks to their substitution with the treatment plant's outputs. Indicators suggest its ability to recirculate waste for energy purposes and nutrients. Future studies will explore the overall cooperative' system, evaluating the three dimensions of sustainability.
- Circular economy in the agri-food sector: an environmental and social analysis from portuguese companiesPublication . Scandurra, Federica; Salomone, Roberta; Caeiro, Sandra; Moura, Ana Pinto deThe agri-food sector is gaining interest in the circular economy, but environmental, economic and social factors limit its adoption at the company level. To explore the adoption of the circular economy from an environmental, economic and social perspective, an empirical analysis based on 9 semi-systematic online interviews was conducted from March to June 2023 on a selected sample of Portuguese companies already implementing circularity in the agri-food sector. The results showed that: circularity is linked to environmental and economic factors but is also limited by cultural and financial barriers; the assessment is not a primary concern in the sector, which explains the lack of knowledge on available methodologies; social value is generated to support the community and develop networks. Therefore, it is crucial to explore the reality of the sector’s operators to understand how to support companies and create tools adapted to their needs to ensure the effective adoption of circularity.
- Circular economy in the agri-food sector: Insights into Portuguese companies’ practicesPublication . Scandurra, Federica; Salomone, Roberta; Caeiro, Sandra; Moura, Ana Pinto deRelevant cultural and financial factors hamper circularity in Portuguese agri-food sector companies. To capture so, an empirical analysis of circular practices in agri-food companies was carried out. Being the agri-food sector central to the Portuguese economy and the numerous circular economy initiatives in the Country, the study aims to comprehend how circularity is achieved from an environmental, social, and financial perspective in Portuguese companies of the sector. Therefore, a survey of a selected sample of companies identified 9 examples of organisations involved in circularity to interview. Results evidence: (I) strong cultural and financial barriers in implementation and evaluation; (ii) generation of social value through community-centred initiatives and collaborations with local companies; (iii) urgency to valorise and communicate financial impact to conquer new funding opportunities. The analysis contributed with new knowledge on the social value-creating capacity of circularity and the impact on companies’ financial performance in the agri-food sector, providing interesting future insights into academia and policymaking.
- Circular economy practices in the agri-food sector: an exploratory survey regarding Portuguese companiesPublication . Scandurra, Federica; Salomone, Roberta; Caeiro, Sandra; Moura, Ana Pinto deThe circular economy is a paradigm able to reconnect the food system to the ecosystem, generating closed loops of inputs and resources. The agri-food sector has followed an intensive production and consumption model but now urges a change in roots to ensure sufficient resources for present and future generations. However, the application and evaluation of CE in companies in the agri-food sector remain underexplored, but it is still a crucial step in pushing the sector's transition. Moreover, circularity is a huge opportunity for companies to increase their efficiency and competitiveness while respecting ecosystem boundaries. In this sense, Portugal represents an interesting context for exploring the potential of circularity, given the centrality of the agri-food sector in the country's economy and the interest shown in the topic, evidenced by several projects and initiatives launched to promote circularity in the sector. For this reason, this study aims to explore how circularity has been adopted and evaluated in the Portuguese agri-food sector. To this end, an online survey of a sample of Portuguese agri-food companies already involved in circularity was conducted from January to March 2023. Considering a final sample of 31 companies, results indicate that: i) company size and the respondent's department have an impact on the level of detail of responses; ii) practices are largely associated with incrementally innovative (77 %), technological (50 %) or socio-organizational (37.5 %); iii) most evaluating companies adopt specific indicators (56 %), while a significant proportion does not evaluate circularity but already adopt evaluation tools related to CE. The study aims to identify circular best practices for the industry to guide practitioners toward adopting circularity and offer insights for future academic contributions. This article aims to restore the sustainability of the food system and prevent food loss and waste along the food chain, in line with Sustainable Development Goals 2.4 and 12.3.
- Circular economy practices in the agri-food sector: awareness and maturity level in Portuguese companiesPublication . Scandurra, Federica; Salomone, Roberta; Caeiro, Sandra; Moura, Ana Pinto deThe circular economy model has drawn global interest, especially in the agri-food sector (. The food system is indeed facing the “food paradox”: it is wasteful but also unable to meet globally the food demand. Thus, it needs to explore ways to fulfil food needs without compromising future food availability. The present article is linked to a previous study that showed the maturity of the circular economy practices in the sector among scientific literature studies. Now, it is relevant to understand if such maturity is also perceived by the sector’s practitioners. Given the relevance of the agri-food sector in the Portuguese economy and its numerous circular economy projects, the study aims to explore how agri-food Portuguese companies consider and adopt circularity. For this, a survey was carried out from January to March 2023 on a convenient sample of Portuguese companies. Preliminary results reveal that: i) companies have a systemic vision of circular economy; ii) most practices are incrementally innovative. These findings allow to identify circularity best
- The maturity level of the agri-food sector in the circular economy domain: a systematic literature reviewPublication . Scandurra, Federica; Salomone, Roberta; Caeiro, Sandra; Gulotta, Teresa MariaThe agri-food sector (AFS) is crucial in the transition towards sustainability. The Circular Economy (CE) has gained global attention as a tool to achieve it systemically. Nevertheless, it is necessary to understand the maturity level of circularity in the AFS. For that reason, this study aims to analyse, through a systematic and bibliometric literature review, examples of circularity in the sector at inter- and intra-company levels, considering case studies with a micro or meso perspective of analysis. The review was conducted using Scopus and Web of Science databases, identifying 43 peer-reviewed articles published from 2015 to the end of February 2022 and 162 practices. The review explored the maturity level of the agri-food sector in terms of circularity through the innovativeness of its practices. Results show that 51% of the practices have a conventional nature, whereas incremental and radical innovation represent 46% and 3% of the sample. The analysis also investigated, through content analysis, the links with Industrial symbiosis (IS), and sustainability, which remains poorly explored, especially in social terms. Although some limitations are present due to the research criteria, the study allows for deep diving into the characteristics of circularity in the sector by contributing to the definition of a database of circular best practices capable of driving practitioners towards its application and capturing challenges and potential ways of improvement.