The food waste–food insecurity nexus in higher education: a review with evidence from African universities

Purpose This study examines the global literature on the relationship between food waste and food insecurity in higher education institutions (HEIs), with an emphasis on Sub-Saharan African contexts. It develops a theory of planned behaviour (TPB)-grounded conceptual framework for the food waste–food insecurity nexus in African HEIs. It identifies evidence-based intervention pathways aligned with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2 and 12. Design/methodology/approach Following the PRISMA 2020 protocol, 43 quality-assured peer-reviewed studies published between 2010 and 2026 were systematically identified, screened and thematically synthesised from a broader bibliometric corpus of 63 studies. Bibliometric analysis examined publication trends, key contributors, geographic concentration, journal outlets and keyword co-occurrence patterns using VOSviewer analytical conventions. Thematic synthesis followed Thomas and Harden’s (2008) three-stage procedure. Findings Global publication output on food waste in HEIs accelerated from 2018 onwards, with African scholarship representing a small but growing share of the corpus. Thematic synthesis identifies four themes: behavioural determinants of food waste aligned with TPB constructs; structural and institutional barriers to food security on campuses; the food waste–food insecurity nexus as a shared resource-efficiency problem; and intervention typologies and their effectiveness. African HEIs display structural barriers, particularly limited cold storage, inadequate kitchen access and financial constraints that simultaneously drive food waste and food insecurity, consistent with a shared causal pathway mediated by low perceived behavioural control. A direct comparison of African and non-African HEI scholarship reveals systematic differences in theoretical grounding, methodological design and the structural specificity of reported determinants. Originality/value This review makes three original contributions. First, it provides the first bibliometric mapping of the food waste–food insecurity nexus literature within HEIs. Second, it operationalises TPB specifically for the Sub-Saharan African HEI context, justifying this theoretical choice against competing behavioural frameworks and extending it through recent applications to student populations. Third, it produces a structured evidence base for SDG-aligned policy interventions in Ghanaian and African universities.