Sustainable solutions for household waste management: Transforming UCO into soap in local communities

Ummu Sakinah Subri; Norhayati Mat Ghani; Nur Maslina Mastam; Anies Faziehan Zakaria; Mohd Syafiq Syazwan Mustafa; Amir Abdullah Muhammad Damanhuri

doi:10.31893/multirev.2025196

Keywords:

sustainable practices

waste reduction

environmental awareness

community participation

Abstract

The improper disposal of Used Cooking Oil (UCO) poses significant environmental challenges, contributing to water contamination, clogged sewage systems, and soil degradation. In Kuala Muda, Kedah, a community heavily involved in culinary activities, UCO is often discarded in environmentally harmful ways due to a lack of structured waste management systems. Despite some awareness of the negative impacts, many community members lack practical knowledge and resources to recycle this waste effectively. The objective of this study is to evaluate the environmental impact of converting UCO into soap, specifically in terms of waste reduction and sustainability. The study focuses on community participation in sustainable waste management and examines key factors such as environmental awareness, perceived ease of participation, perceived benefits (environmental and economic), and social influence. A pre-test/post-test design was used, involving a baseline survey, soap-making training, and a follow-up survey six months after implementation. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, paired t-tests, and correlation analysis. Additionally, a waste audit was conducted before and after the intervention to assess the reduction in improper disposal of UCO. The results revealed a significant increase in community participation, with the mean score rising from 3.50 (pre-test) to 4.20 (post-test). The waste audit showed a 60% reduction in the volume of improperly disposed UCO, from 150 liters to 60 liters per month. Factors such as environmental awareness, perceived benefits, and social influence were found to be strong predictors of participation. In conclusion, the soap-making initiative not only reduced environmental waste but also improved community engagement in sustainable practices. The findings suggest that similar initiatives could be implemented in other communities to promote waste reduction and environmental sustainability. Future research could explore the scalability of this approach to different contexts and assess long-term sustainability impacts.
References
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

How to cite

Subri, U. S., Ghani, N. M., Mastam, N. M., Zakaria, A. F., Mustafa, M. S. S., & Damanhuri, A. A. M. (2025). Sustainable solutions for household waste management: Transforming UCO into soap in local communities. Multidisciplinary Reviews, 8(9), 2025196. https://doi.org/10.31893/multirev.2025196

[1] Adu, R. O., Gyasi, S. F., Essumang, D. K., & Otabil, K. B. (2020). Medical waste-sorting and management practices in five hospitals in Ghana. Journal of Environmental and Public Health, 1-14. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.1155/2020/2934296

[2] Arruda, T., Dantas, M., Araújo, K., Rodrigues, F., Ricardo, N., & Bitu, S. (2017). Blends of diesel and biodiesel of cooking oil waste and moringa: Kinetic and thermal analysis and monitoring during storage. International Journal of Energy and Environmental Engineering, 8(2), 135-141. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.1007/s40095-017-0232-x

[3] Astuti, E. and Mufrodi, Z. (2019). Optimum condition of biodiesel production from waste cooking oil using continuous stirred tank reactor. International Journal of Smart Grid and Clean Energy, 201-205. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.12720/sgce.8.2.201-205

[4] Febijanto, I., Ulfah, F., Kusrestuwardhani, Siswanto, & Yuwono Trihadi, S. E. (2023). A review on used cooking oil as a sustainable biodiesel feedstock in Indonesia. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 1187(1), 012011. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1187/1/012011

[5] Ferreira, L., César, A., Conejero, M., & Guabiroba, R. (2018). A voluntary delivery point in reverse supply chain for waste cooking oil: An action plan for participation of a public-school in the state of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. Recycling, 3(4), 48. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.3390/recycling3040048

[6] Kamaruzaman, N. H. I., Halim, N. S. A., Malek, N., & Idris, N. (2022). Households awareness and practices on used cooking oil recycling in Felda Lepar Hilir 1, Pahang. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 1102(1), 012073. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1102/1/012073

[7] Kumar, A., & Singh, R. (2018). Sustainable production of soap from waste cooking oil. Journal of Cleaner Production, 172, 1233-1240. https://doi.org/:10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.10.195.

[8] Kuziemska, B., Grużewska, A., Wysokiński, A., Pakuła, K., & Pieniak-Lendzion, K. (2021). Environmental awareness and knowledge of municipal waste management among inhabitants of eastern mazovia. Rocznik Ochrona Środowiska, 23, 356-368. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.54740/ros.2021.024

[9] Liu, S., Zhou, S., Peng, A., & Li, W. (2019). Investigation of physiochemical and rheological properties of waste cooking oil/sbs/eva composite modified petroleum asphalt. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 137(26). https://https://doi.org/.org/10.1002/app.48828

[10] Loizides, M. I., Loizidou, X. I., Orthodoxou, D. L., & Petsa, D. (2019). Circular bioeconomy in action: collection and recycling of domestic used cooking oil through a social, reverse logistics system. Recycling, 4(2), 16. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.3390/recycling4020016

[11] Mahmudah, R. and Shofiah, N. (2023). From waste to wealth: A novel approach for empowering society through recycling used cooking oil into soap. Journal of Community Service and Empowerment, 4(2), 343-350. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.22219/jcse.v4i2.25816

[12] Majid, M. K., Ramli, M. F., Badyalina, B., Ya’acob, F. F., & Ghazali, A. F. (2021). To recycle or not to recycle: factors affecting recycling intention among residents in semi-dense areas in Johor, Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 11(8). https://https://doi.org/.org/10.6007/ijarbss/v11-i8/10560

[13] Meyer, A. (2019). The environmental impact of household cleaning products: A review. Environmental Science & Policy, 101, 1-10. https://doi.org/:10.1016/j.envsci.2019.07.003

[14] Murwaningsih, T. (2021). Processing used cooking oil into soap as an effort to establish home industry. Jurnal Pengabdian Kepada Masyarakat Teknologi Dan Aplikasi, 2(2), 147-158. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.12928/spekta.v2i2.3885

[15] Nurhayati, E. and Nurhayati, S. (2023). Community waste management education: strategies and impacts. Jurnal Dimensi, 12(3), 677-686. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.33373/dms.v12i3.5582

[16] Pauhesti, P., Sunny Yulia, P., Widiyatni, H., Sutadiwiria, Y., Jane, G., & Yanti, W. (2024). Soap bar making from waste cooking oil for residents of 07 area, duri pulo sub-district, Jakarta. International Journal of Community Service, 4(2), 145-148. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.51601/ijcs.v4i2.265

[17] Purwanto, E., Yulianto, A., Biasini, N., Octavia, J., & Wati, V. O. (2023). Environmental awareness and intention to reduce food waste among urban people. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 1168(1), 012048. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1168/1/012048

[18] Sari, D. P., Masruroh, N. A., & Asih, A. M. S. (2021). Consumer intention to participate in e-waste collection programs: A study of smartphone waste in Indonesia. Sustainability, 13(5), 2759. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.3390/su13052759

[19] Si, W., Jiang, C., & Lin, M. (2022). The relationship between environmental awareness, habitat quality, and community residents’ pro-environmental behavior—mediated effects model analysis based on social capital. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(20), 13253. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.3390/ijerph192013253

[20] Yang, M. X., Tang, X., Cheung, M. L., & Zhang, Y. (2020). An institutional perspective on consumers' environmental awareness and pro‐environmental behavioral intention: Evidence from 39 countries. Business Strategy and the Environment, 30(1), 566-575. https://https://doi.org/.org/10.1002/bse.2638

Abstract

References

How to cite