Spatial–temporal and structural differences in the carbon footprints embedded in households food waste in urban and rural China

Household food waste (HFW) accounted for about 66% of global food waste’s total carbon footprints (CF). Based on China’s macro-panel food consumption data, this paper measures the urban–rural and provincial differences in the HFW CF from scale, structure, and temporal-spatial evolution perspectives. The results indicate that HFW and CF continue to grow, and the total CF and per capita HFW in urban households are higher than in rural households. The structural differences between urban and rural HFW CF vary significantly over time and spaces, which reflected that rural households in the southeastern coastal areas have higher per capita HFW CF than urban in 2019. The research results help to clarify the distribution and evolution pattern of HFW CF in China and offer new ideas for the differentiated governance of CF reduction in the food system.