Food waste is one of the fundamental issues when it comes to environmental impacts, and
this type of waste results in the food’s loss itself, but also that of water, energy, fertilizers, and other
resources used for its production. Many vegetable parts are removed from the final product before
reaching retail (peels, roots, and seeds), and these raw materials are rich sources of highly valuable
molecules such as phytochemicals, minerals, vitamins, and other compounds with health benefits
(prevention of several diseases, improvement of the immune system, regulating gastrointestinal
transit, and others). Therefore, substantial efforts have been made to find technological solutions to
avoid food waste, namely through its reuse in the food chain, thus promoting the circular economy
and sustainability. This review focuses on the biggest wastes generated by the food industry, the most
common destinations, and case studies applying these by-products or biowaste in the food industry.
The authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT,
Portugal) for financial support through national funds FCT/MCTES to the CIMO (UIDB/00690/2020).
M.C. Pedrosa thank FCT for her PhD grant (2021.04531.BD), S. Heleno and M. Carocho thank FCT for
their individual employment program contract (CEECIND/03040/2017, CEEC-IND/00831/2018)
and L. Barros also thanks FCT through the institutional scientific employment program contract
for her contract.
