Kitchen waste based recipe development process: Sustainable gastronomy and AI-powered solutions

The United Nations recognizes food waste as a global social problem because it endangers the sustainability of the food supply chain, increases food security problems, and accelerates social inequality. Food waste is unacceptable not only from an environmental and economic perspective but also from an ethical perspective. The extent of food waste in global food service businesses is alarming due to the limited measures implemented. Despite the increasing academic interest in understanding the magnitude of food waste produced in the food service sector, and determining its drivers and approaches to reduce waste, studies appear to be limited to the theoretical dimension. Considering the risks caused by the global climate and food crises, urgent measures and actions are needed to reduce food waste and reuse resources considered as waste. This thesis aims to redesign the product life cycles of food waste produced by restaurants, which are responsible for a significant portion of the global food waste burden, and to make the zero-waste kitchen philosophy, which encourages the holistic use of food, a part of sustainable restaurant management with practical solutions. This study, which combines thought with action to produce a solution to the problem of food waste, was conducted within the scope of action research, which is an approach that integrates theory and practice. In this context, in the first stage of the study, in-depth interviews were conducted with chefs working at various levels in five-star accommodation facilities with Sustainable Tourism Certificates operating in Istanbul and offering a la carte restaurant services. The data collected as a result of interviews with participating chefs who are at the source of the food waste problem were examined inductively through content analysis using the MAXQDA qualitative data analysis program. Avoidable, possibly avoidable and unavoidable food waste occurring in restaurants was determined as a model product and recipe suggestions were created from these products with the support of artificial intelligence. According to the sensory analysis results, it was revealed that artificial intelligence is a resource that should be used in zero-waste kitchen approaches, that this resource can be trained to eliminate its deficiencies in the future, and that the unique creativity and unstoppable speed it offers in recipe development supports the holistic use of food in kitchens. The study was concluded with some rational strategies, solution suggestions and an action plan for preventing and reducing food waste at every stage of production, especially in commercial kitchens, within the scope of sustainable production and consumption approaches.