Increasing the sustainability of food production and manufacturing can be achieved through several pathways. However, the most obvious will be eliminating its major inefficiencies: food losses and waste. The food wasted along the supply chain exceeded half of its production in 2021 in most developed countries. This approach to feeding our population harms the economy, society, and the environment and signals the necessity of rethinking the agri-food system. Mainly, the use of resources needs to be optimized, and the conceptualization of food waste needs to change from an unavoidable result of food production to a missed opportunity. Knowing when, how, and where spoilage occurs is essential to reach this goal. Coupling food science, engineering, and data analytics techniques can provide an innovative approach to the wicked problem of spoilage and waste. This session will provide an overview of the state-of-the-art research and approaches to uncovering the underlying causes of food loss and waste and solutions leading to reduced FLW. Speaker: Maria Corradini, PhD