The global demand for food is continuously growing, requiring the expansion of the food industry. However, due to environmental concerns, this expansion needs to be done sustainably. Considering the mentioned scenario, this paper identifies challenges and proposes solutions for implementing sustainable practices in Brazil’s vegetable oil and fat industries.
This study used two approaches: a case study comprising semi-structured interviews and a literature review initially conducted to identify challenges and solutions for the industry in this food sector. Interpretive structural modeling and cross-impact matrix multiplication analysis applied to classification were used to interrelate the challenges.
The results show eight main challenges in the studied processes: the amount of phosphorus in the effluents, disposal of nickel catalyst, boiler pollution, high water and electricity consumption, inefficient oil recovery, fatty acid entrainment in the effluents, lack of technologies to avoid environmental accidents and steam leakage in the plants.
The interrelationship between the challenges described above is complex, requiring significant efforts to overcome the lack of sustainability in this food production system. To cope with such complexity, nineteen solutions have been proposed to facilitate the resolution of these challenges, assisting in reducing the food industry’s environmental impact.
No prior studies using management methods to assess the challenges and solutions for Brazil’s vegetable oil and fat industry were found.
