The strategy food waste in restaurants: A systematic literature review

This study critically analyzes the literature on food waste in restaurants. Through a systematic literature review approach based on the evaluation and synthesis of articles, existing gaps in the literature and key research directions for the future research agenda were identified. Thematic analysis was applied to organize the selected articles around five themes representing various aspects of food waste. The themes ranged from food waste in restaurants' operational processes to best practices. Accordingly, it was found that the increase in empirical research has brought both new findings and new problems concerning food waste at the end-consumer level in restaurants. Consumer research on plate waste at the end-consumer level and the type of food on the plate, as well as on doggy bags and their use as one of the good practices, require a special emphasis on responsible production and consumption and good practices in line with sustainable development goals. •It can be seen that a consumer leaves at least 80.21 g of waste on their plate and the most wasted foods in all studies are meat, vegetables and rice.•Doggy bags are one of the examples of good practice that have come to the fore in the literature in recent years and represent a new research agenda.•One of the most striking findings is that tourists waste more in restaurants than locals.•Behavioural intention and behavioural control are key concepts in the relationship between restaurant food waste and consumer behaviour.•Researchers' findings on the stage at which food waste occurs in restaurants are not parallel.