Utilization of food wastes as biomass is not greatly promoted. In addition to their uses as fertilizer and animal feed, food wastes are rich organic resources that can be used as bioenergy. Therefore, we thought about making charcoal from food waste available as fuel and fertilizer. In this study, food wastes were examined by thermal analyses using simultaneous thermogravimetry (TG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). The gases produced were detected by MS and FTIR. Oxidative pyrolysis occurred in three stages of weight loss that generated two prominent exothermic peaks. Pyrolysis under oxygen-free conditions occurred in two distinct stages of weight loss that did not generate prominent exothermic peaks. The main gases produced were H₂O, CO₂ and CO, and the characteristics of the produced gas peaks were different in artificial air and oxygen-free atmospheres.