Background: The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) defines food waste as food fit for human consumption that is thrown away, whether it has been held over its expiration date or has been allowed to expire. Food waste has drawn a lot of attention recently and is increasingly recognized as the root of a number of detrimental repercussions, including problems with health, the economy, society, and the environment. Objective: The current study aimed to evaluate the causes of hospital food waste in surgical wards as mentioned by patients. Patients and methods: Design:A descriptive exploratory research design was used.Setting: The study was carried out in surgical wards of two hospitals, AL-Hussein and Bab-ELSharia University Hospitals, Egypt. Subjects:A convenient sample of 161 adult patients from both genders who agreed to participate in the study. Tools: Three tools were used to collect data; Patients personal data, Rate of food waste questionnaire and Acute Care Hospital Foodservice Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (ACHFPSQ). Results: The participants' ages ranged between <30and 75 years, 44.1% of them had appetite worse than normal in the hospital and 42.2% said that they had less than usual intake of food in the hospital. About 30.4% of the studied patients said that the hospital food rarely has been as good as they expected, and 31.7% of them said that they never be able to choose a healthy meal in hospital. Conclusion: The research provides a helpful foundation for understanding the meals that patients throw away. The findings reveal a concerning amount of food waste that calls for a determined action by hospital officials. The repercussions of this waste may not only have negative effects on the economy or the environment, but also adverse effects on patients' indirect health. Create a customized, flexible meal reservation procedure based on patient's unique needs, tastes, and dietary requirements raise the quality of the meal.