Environmental footprints and eco-efficiency of food used in a hospital in Uruguay

Authors

  • Virgílio J. Strasburg PhD in Environmental Quality, Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Nutrition, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
  • Sonia Dergazarián Director of the Nutrition Department, Hospital of Clinics Dr. Manuel Quintela, Montevideo, Uruguay https://orcid.org/0009-0007-1004-6431
  • Junior Miranda Scheuer PhD in Agricultural Sciences, Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Agronomy, Universidad de la República (Udelar), Montevideo, Uruguay https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1190-422X
  • Ali Saadoun PhD in Physiology and Pathophysiology of Human Nutrition, Full Professor, Faculty of Sciences, Faculty of Agronomy, Universidad de la República (Udelar). Montevideo, Uruguay https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2251-6748

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18472/SustDeb.v15n3.2024.55736

Keywords:

Hospital food., Greenhouse gases., Environmental footprints., Nutrition.

Abstract

The foods used to provide meals for communities cause different environmental impacts. This article aimed to identify the environmental impacts of environmental footprints and greenhouse gases (GHG) and calculate eco-efficiency (EE) according to the foods used by a food service at the Hospital de Clínicas (HC) in Montevideo. The foods purchased by the HC in 2021 and the first half of 2022 were evaluated. Of the list of 90 foods, 38 of them were responsible for more than 95% of the amount used. In the evaluation of the variables, eight foods of animal origin represented 33.3% of the total in kg and 52.3% of the economic value, and from 74% to 89.7% in terms of the footprints evaluated. The amount used and the place of origin of some foods directly influenced the GHG results found.

Author Biographies

  • Virgílio J. Strasburg, PhD in Environmental Quality, Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Nutrition, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil

    PhD in Environmental Quality, Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Nutrition, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil

  • Sonia Dergazarián, Director of the Nutrition Department, Hospital of Clinics Dr. Manuel Quintela, Montevideo, Uruguay

    Director of the Nutrition Department, Hospital of Clinics Dr. Manuel Quintela, Montevideo, Uruguay

  • Junior Miranda Scheuer, PhD in Agricultural Sciences, Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Agronomy, Universidad de la República (Udelar), Montevideo, Uruguay

    PhD in Agricultural Sciences, Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Agronomy, Universidad de la República (Udelar), Montevideo, Uruguay

  • Ali Saadoun, PhD in Physiology and Pathophysiology of Human Nutrition, Full Professor, Faculty of Sciences, Faculty of Agronomy, Universidad de la República (Udelar). Montevideo, Uruguay

    PhD in Physiology and Pathophysiology of Human Nutrition, Full Professor, Faculty of Sciences, Faculty of Agronomy, Universidad de la República (Udelar). Montevideo, Uruguay

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Published

2024-12-21

How to Cite

Environmental footprints and eco-efficiency of food used in a hospital in Uruguay. (2024). Sustainability in Debate, 15(3), 94-130. https://doi.org/10.18472/SustDeb.v15n3.2024.55736

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