Strategic Configurations of Waste-Related CO ₂ Emissions in the Agri-Food Sector: A Sustainability-Oriented Empirical Analysis

Abstract Agri-food systems are responsible for a substantial share of global carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions, with food waste constituting one of the most avoidable yet underexplored sources of emissions. Existing studies largely approach waste-related emissions from technical or accounting perspectives, offering limited insight into their strategic foundations. This study aims to examine waste-related CO 2 emissions in agri-food systems from a strategic management perspective, identifying distinct emission configurations across countries. The study adopts a configuration-based research design, using cross-country agri-food CO 2 emissions data from 236 countries for the period 1990–2020. Cluster analysis is applied to country-level averages of waste-related CO 2 emissions, total agri-food system emissions, and the relative share of waste emissions. The analysis is theoretically grounded in the Natural Resource-Based View (NRBV), which conceptualizes environmental performance as a strategic outcome. The results reveal three distinct waste-related emission configurations that differ significantly in both emission scale and composition. These configurations can be interpreted as outcome patterns consistent with different sustainability orientations, rather than as purely technological or structural differences. This finding highlights the potential strategic relevance of waste-related emission structures within agri-food systems. By linking emission configurations with the NRBV framework, the study contributes to the sustainability and strategic management literature by offering a configuration-based perspective on waste-related CO 2 emissions in agri-food systems. These findings provide insights for both sustainability research and policy discussions aimed at reducing waste-related emissions in agri-food systems.