Transforming food systems in Southeast Asia: the challenge of food loss and waste

The report examines food loss and waste (FLW) in Southeast Asia, arguing that current technocratic approaches to efficiency often ignore embedded power structures and gender inequalities. Through case studies on coffee in Bali, small-scale fisheries in the region, and urban agriculture in Bangkok, it finds that socio-institutional innovations—such as social forestry and rural-urban linkages—are generally more effective than standalone technologies like biogas digesters or solar dryers. The authors recommend a rights-based, participatory approach to FLW reduction that integrates agroecology and gender-transformative frameworks to ensure a just food systems transition.

• A literature review of FLW in Southeast Asia reveals a significant gap in conceptual analysis regarding power structures, food sovereignty, and food justice, with a prevailing over-emphasis on technocratic efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction.
• In Bali's coffee sector, social agroforestry is identified as a successful model for climate resilience and circularity, though the potential for organic waste valorization is hindered by gender-based barriers to funding and resources.
• Small-scale fisheries in Southeast Asia face a trade-off where traditional fish processing reduces waste, but industrialization and unselective fishing methods like trawling lead to 'fishing down the food web' and ecosystem degradation.
• Gender inequality significantly impacts FLW in fisheries; women dominate the processing node but have limited access to capital-intensive technologies like solar dryers, which are primarily managed by men.
• Bangkok's rooftop agriculture and the BMA's District Food Management Sandbox demonstrate successful urban organic waste valorization, though scaling is limited by physical space, staffing, and the exclusion of informal waste workers.
• Technological innovations such as biogas digesters and solar dryers showed low efficacy across multiple case studies due to high maintenance requirements and a lack of participatory co-design with local users.
• Socio-institutional innovations, particularly those leveraging rural-urban linkages and collective action, were found to be more impactful than purely technical solutions.
• The report argues that the current FLW discourse fails to incorporate biodiversity and animal welfare, specifically ignoring how 'efficient' bycatch utilization can incentivize unsustainable fishing practices.

APA

Pottinger-Glass, C., Mallon, I., Asvanon, R., & Archer, D. (2025). Transforming food systems in Southeast Asia: the challenge of food loss and waste. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/200357/food-loss-waste-southeast-asia.pdf

Chicago

Pottinger-Glass, Chloe, Isabelle Mallon, Raja Asvanon, and Diane Archer. Transforming food systems in Southeast Asia: the challenge of food loss and waste. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2025. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/200357/food-loss-waste-southeast-asia.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Pottinger-Glass |first1=Chloe |last2=Mallon |first2=Isabelle |last3=Asvanon |first3=Raja |last4=Archer |first4=Diane |title=Transforming food systems in Southeast Asia: the challenge of food loss and waste |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=August 2025 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/200357/food-loss-waste-southeast-asia.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{pottingerglass2025transforming, author = {Pottinger-Glass, Chloe and Mallon, Isabelle and Asvanon, Raja and Archer, Diane}, title = {{Transforming food systems in Southeast Asia: the challenge of food loss and waste}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2025}, month = aug, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/200357/food-loss-waste-southeast-asia.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }