Stimulating Green Growth in Bandung’s Food Sector: An Agent Based Simulation on Food Waste Problem
Food waste is one of the primary contributors to environmental change in Indonesia, posing a significant threat to global sustainability. Food waste in landfills contributes to more methane emissions than any other landfilled material due to its quick decay rate. One of these problems is occurring in the Bandung area, where a humanitarian tragedy caused by a garbage explosion and landslide took place 20 years, leading to a severe waste problem. A similar issue is now happening again. The latest data shows that the final waste disposal site in Bandung area has reached 1200% of its capacity, with around 45% of total waste being dominated by food waste. As a response to this situation, this study simulated the food waste problem in Bandung area, especially in a buffet restaurant to identify the mechanisms beyond the waste problem and find a solution. This study proposes an Agent-Based Modelling as a tool to explain the food waste problem in Bandung, Indonesia and how to reduce it, as shaped by different scenarios. Our simulations indicate that introducing the new policy can reduce the amount of food waste generated by the restaurant. The most effective one is the mixed instrument of rewards and fines policy.
