A Convergent Systems Approach to Food Loss and Waste in The Philippines

Food loss and waste (FLW) represent a critical sustainability challenge with profound implications for food security, environmental resilience, and economic stability. This study introduces a Convergent Systems Model (CSM) that integrates systems mapping, the Iceberg Model, and the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) sustainability framework to capture both surface-level events and deep systemic drivers of FLW. Unlike earlier studies that treat these analytical tools separately, this approach offers a multi-layered understanding of interactions, feedback loops, and root causes in a scalable format. It focuses on the Philippines, an emerging economy with fragmented agricultural systems, logistical constraints, entrenched socio-cultural norms, and gaps in policy implementation, reconceptualising FLW as an emergent property of interdependent subsystems. Data were gathered through an extensive review of peer-reviewed literature, government reports, sustainability indexes, and national surveys. Findings identify strategic leverage points, including targeted food literacy campaigns, expanded cold chain infrastructure, standardized labelling, communitybased recovery systems, and digital innovations for surplus redistribution. The TBL analysis highlights significant social impacts, including hunger and malnutrition, environmental pressures from greenhouse gas emissions and resource depletion, and economic losses resulting from inefficiencies across the value chain. By integrating diagnosis and intervention design, the CSM bridges analytical gaps and provides a transferable framework for reducing FLW in complex, evolving food systems of emerging economies. This study advances the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2 (Zero Hunger) and 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) by promoting equitybased, cross-sectoral, and sustainability-integrated strategies.