Food Waste Behavior Research Articles

Consequences of Recent Crises on the FLW Consumer Behaviour: A National Wide Representative Research-The Case of Romania.

Research on food loss and waste (FLW) is quite limited in emerging countries, such as Romania, as the phenomenon, its consequences, and implications are not yet properly understood by both policy makers and consumers. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to conduct representative research in Romania to identify the main clusters of consumers depending on their food waste behaviour. By means of cluster analysis, we highlight the main consumer typologies in Romania, regarding their food waste behaviour. The main findings reveal the presence of three distinct segments of consumer typologies based on their food waste behaviour, including low-income young wasters, conscious middle-age wasters, and well-educated mature non-wasters. This study highlights the need for targeted interventions that consider the unique characteristics and behaviours of each segment to effectively reduce FLW at the household level. Overall, this paper provides important insights for academia and for policymakers in the field of FLW management. The food loss and waste behaviour has significant economic, social, and environmental impacts, and reducing it requires a common effort from all stakeholders. Reducing food waste presents challenges, but also presents an opportunity to improve economic, social, and environmental outcomes.

Drivers of divergent industry and consumer food waste behaviors: The case of reclosable and resealable packaging

Optimizing packaging to align with consumers' food management needs can improve packaging's potential to reduce household food waste, important for a sustainable food system. This paper provides actionable insights to support the food/beverage–packaging industry, policymakers, and researchers to better understand the factors impeding industry implementation of packaging aligned to consumer needs and the potential flow-on effects on household food waste. To facilitate understanding, a consumer-industry grounded model is presented based in the Australian context, developed through qualitative research using the Gioia method to examine reclosable/resealable packaging, food storage, and household food waste.The results indicate that divergent packaging priorities and needs in industry and consumers impede food waste reduction. Industry concerns for business viability mean prioritizing features to sell products, hence consumer needs are secondary. Consumer needs are framed by individual task goals for managing food storage and the availability of supporting resources, including appropriate packaging. Suggestions to help align consumer and industry priorities include increased industry–consumer communication to better help industry understand consumer needs and validating product-packaging with consumers.

Improving positive food waste behaviors: An egocentric network analysis evaluation of leading women in agriculture’s advice networks

The multidimensionality of COVID-19’s consequences on food access and food waste behaviors was not immune to one gender versus another. The role of agricultural women leaders in alleviating food security concerns is not widely understood. An egocentric network analysis was conducted to assess the attributes possessed by social network peers and to discover variables that impact women’s food waste behavior. Researchers found that women’s advice networks were composed primarily of family or friends, known for more than five years, communicate weekly, can be described as an opinion leader, and share mutual trust. The density of women’s networks needs to be researched further to determine a strategic plan to expose women leaders to new information and other social networks. Data indicated women’s food waste behavior was influenced by their perceptions of COVID-19 as an opportunity for food waste change, innovation, and reputation enhancement. The need to develop current and future women agricultural leaders to improve food access and food sovereignty within global communities cannot be overstated.

It is just wrong: Moral foundations and food waste

Household food waste is one of the major obstacles to meeting global emission targets. Yet, it seems that we still do not fully understand why some people are more driven than others in their engagement to reduce household food waste. Here, we take a new perspective and examine (a) the perceived morality of food waste as a driver for food waste behavior and (b) whether interventions that associate food waste with either the moral foundation of harm or disgust can increase both intentions to reduce food waste and to engage more in future meal planning. Across two study phases (N = 698 and 446; respectively), we found support for our hypothesis that the belief that food waste is morally wrong is negatively associated with self-reported food waste. Moreover, we found that a harm manipulation, relative to a disgust manipulation and a control condition, increased participants’ intention to reduce food waste and future meal planning intentions via food waste moral judgment, but only for those individuals who were at mean or higher values on the care foundation. A disgust manipulation, in contrast, compared to a harm manipulation, directly elicited stronger intentions to reduce food waste and to plan meals, but again only for those who endorsed the associated purity foundation. Our findings suggest different cognitive mechanisms for individuals who ground their morality in the care and the purity foundations and thus have several implications for practice and future research.

New insights in food security and environmental sustainability through waste food management.

Food waste has been identified as one of the major factors that constitute numerous anthropogenic activities, especially in developing countries. There is a growing problem with food waste that affects every part of the waste management system, from collection to disposal; finding long-term solutions necessitates involving all participants in the food supply chain, from farmers and manufacturers to distributors and consumers. In addition to food waste management, maintaining food sustainability and security globally is crucial so that every individual, household, and nation can always get food. "End hunger, achieve food security and enhanced nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture" are among the main challenges of global sustainable development (SDG) goal 2. Therefore, sustainable food waste management technology is needed. Recent attention has been focused on global food loss and waste. One-third of food produced for human use is wasted every year. Source reduction (i.e., limiting food losses and waste) and contemporary treatment technologies appear to be the most promising strategy for converting food waste into safe, nutritious, value-added feed products and achieving sustainability. Food waste is also employed in industrial processes for the production of biofuels or biopolymers. Biofuels mitigate the detrimental effects of fossil fuels. Identifying crop-producing zones, bioenergy cultivars, and management practices will enhance the natural environment and sustainable biochemical process. Traditional food waste reduction strategies are ineffective in lowering GHG emissions and food waste treatment. The main contribution of this study is an inventory of the theoretical and practical methods of prevention and minimization of food waste and losses. It identifies the trade-offs for food safety, sustainability, and security. Moreover, it investigates the impact of COVID-19 on food waste behavior.

Households' food waste behavior prediction from a moral perspective: a case of China.

The increasing rate of food waste is becoming a threat to realizing Sustainable Development goal 2 by 2030. A significant portion of food is wasted along the entire food supply chain, resulting in adverse economic, ecological and social consequences. Inferring from the norm activation model (NAM), the study investigates the influence of benefits awareness, lack of concern and personal norm on households' food waste reduction intention. Gathering research data via an online survey in Jiangsu province in China, a total sample of 408 responses were analyzed using structural equation model. It was found that the extended NAM model developed is more appropriate for assessing food waste reduction intention with a significant improved explanatory potential from 32.0 to 52.0%. Households' awareness of consequences was established to have a positive effect on ascription of responsibility, and they both impact personal norm positively. Personal norm influences food waste reduction intention positively. Again, the awareness of the benefits for reducing food waste affects households' intention to reduce food waste positively. Lack of concern for food waste negatively affects their personal norm and food waste reduction intentions. These findings furnish valuable insights for future campaigns to educate people and influence their moral norms toward the importance and involvement in achieving Sustainable Development Goals related to food waste.

Analisa Kuantitas dan Komposisi Timbulan Sampah Makanan Supermarket di Surabaya

One of the serious problems being faced by several countries is food waste. The percentage of food waste generated in Indonesia in the last 20 years has tended to increase. In 2000, food waste generation in Indonesia was 39%, while in 2019 it increased to 55%. And 44% of food waste is food that is still suitable for consumption. There are various factors that can affect the amount of food waste generation. One of them is food waste behavior or someone's behavior towards food waste. In this study, researchers will analyze the quantity and composition of waste and also packaging type of waste generation from a supermarket located in Surabaya, East Java. As for this research, it used a survey collection technique in the form of secondary data, namely data collected by researchers from one of the supermarkets in Surabaya. Secondary data on waste composition and generation obtained are Oily fruits/seeds (peanuts, green beans, and coconut), Grains (wheat, rice, corn, wheat flour), Vegetables, Meat (beef, goat, chicken, pork), fish, milk, eggs, starchy foods, sugar, oil and fat. From the data that has been obtained, it is known that the generation of food waste at the Supermarket X is 40.8 kg per day with the dominating composition of waste consisting of vegetables, fruit and meat.

Feeding Patterns and Food Waste Behavior on the Nutritional Status of Toddlers

Food Waste is a growing problem. In household scale, Food Waste often considered as a normal thing. Food composition and less variant (quality) is one of factor who can affect to nutritional status of toddlers and Food Waste, if the more Food Waste produced by toddlers, the more nutrients are wasted in vain, so that the food intake eaten by children does not match the required needs. Toddlers who do not get the food intake that should be, able to affect the nutritional status and result in stunted growth and development of children. This research aims to determine the relationship between Food Waste Behavior and Feeding Patterns on the Nutritional Status of Toddlers in Tanah Sareal District, Bogor City. This type of research is cross sectional with purposive sampling data collection technique with 100 respondents. The statistical test used is Chi-Square. Based on the results of the research, it was found that in Tanah Sareal Subdistrict had a high Food Waste behavior of 69%. While the results of the feeding pattern in Tanah Sareal District have an inappropriate feeding pattern of 52%. There is a significant relationship between Food Waste behavior on the nutritional status of toddlers (p-value of 0.000) and there is a significant relationship between feeding patterns and nutritional status of toddlers (p-value of 0.000).

Feeding Patterns and Food Waste Behavior on the Nutritional Status of Toddlers

Feeding Patterns and Food Waste Behavior on the Nutritional Status of Toddlers

Household food-waste prevention behaviors in Beijing, Shanghai, and Wuhan in China compared with those in Tokyo and Bangkok

We built a comprehensive framework to explore how psychological factors and food-related behavior routines affect household food-waste behaviors. We conducted online surveys in Beijing, Shanghai, and Wuhan, in China and in Tokyo and Bangkok. We obtained 3,000 responses in total. The results showed that the share of people who always leave no leftovers when eating out was considerably lower in the three Chinese cities than in Tokyo and Bangkok. Additionally, the frequency of food disposal at the cooking and storage stages was higher than at the eating stages when eating at home. The model analysis showed that the intention of food-waste prevention was the most decisive factor influencing food-disposal behaviors for eating at home or eating out. Personal norm was the main driver of intention of food-waste prevention when eating at home, while the subjective norm was the strongest predictor of intention when eating out.

For the love of money and the planet: Experimental evidence on co-benefits framing and food waste reduction intentions

This randomized control trial examines the effect of informational nudges highlighting the monetary or environmental benefits, or co-benefits, of food-saving behaviors on intentions to reduce food waste within the framework of the Extended Theory of Planned Behavior (ETPB). A representative sample of Spanish participants (N = 1008) were exposed to control, monetary, environmental, or co-benefits conditions and asked to indicate their intentions to reduce household fruit and vegetable waste. Psychological, behavioral, and situational ETPB factors affecting food waste behavior were also measured. Only co-benefits framing was found to have a significant effect. Participants who were highly concerned about the environmental impact of wasting food were more strongly influenced by the co-benefits and monetary framings. Further, perceived behavioral control and food waste habits were positively associated with food-saving intentions. Thus, co-benefits framing in informational nudges can strengthen consumer intention to reduce fruit and vegetable waste, especially among consumers with higher levels of environmental concern.

Determinants of Household Food Waste in Southeast Asia: A Systematic Review

ABSTRACT This systematic review aimed to analyze the determinant factors of household food waste in Southeast Asia. Two databases (Web of Science and ScienceDirect) and hand searching were used to select the articles. A total of 12 studies were identified in this review. Household food waste behavior was associated with psychological factors, food quality and safety, and consumer behavior (planning, purchasing, storing, and eating behaviors). This systematic review implies that understanding our needs, families, and eating habits are essential for reducing food waste.

Ordering the right quantity? Examining the impact of plate size vagueness on food waste in an online food delivery system

Food waste has far-reaching effects on the global population and thus has been given significant attention in United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. An increased generation of food waste at the consumer level due to online food delivery (OFD) systems has been a topic of research attention. The present study empirically investigates the impact of vagueness in plate size information on OFD apps on the food waste behavior of consumers and potential underlying psychological mechanisms involved in the online food ordering process. Through a 2 × 2 experimental design carried out in India, the causal effect of the vagueness in plate size information on food waste is examined through the mediating roles of anticipated shortage and over-ordering. When consumers anticipate a food shortfall due to vagueness in plate size information, they prefer to order more than needed, which eventually leads to higher food waste (FW). The theoretical and practical implications of the study are discussed.

How risk perception regarding the COVID-19 pandemic affected household food waste: Evidence from Brazil

Food waste is a worldwide problem. One third of the food produced in the world is lost or wasted every year. Most of this waste takes place downstream of the supply chain due to consumer behavior. This issue is expected to increase in both developed and emerging economies. With the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, a range of challenges led to changes in consumer behavior. This study explores household food waste behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic through the lens of the Theory of Planned Behavior. The risk perception regarding the pandemic was integrated into a broader framework, which was analyzed by Structural Equation Modeling. The sample comprises the participation of 452 Brazilian individuals. The results show that all the predictors incorporated in the model were statistically significant. The intention of reducing household food waste during the pandemic was found to be the strongest predictor of food waste behavior. Additionally, the pandemic apparently influenced consumers' perceptions about the control they think they have over food waste. This research has theoretical and managerial implications. From a theoretical perspective, this study identifies key predictors of household food waste by considering a period of health crisis in an emerging country. From a managerial standpoint, this research may provide a learning experience for future similar scenarios. Results may also motivate consumers to look for ways to reduce, reuse and recycle food waste.

External or internal beauty? A study on the mechanism influencing food waste behavior

A personal norms intervention strategy is an effective way to reduce food waste behavior. However, the mechanism controlling how personal norms affect food waste behavior needs to be further investigated. In addition, previous studies have reported that weight control is part of this mechanism, but few studies have focused on how internal (personal norms) and external beauty (weight control) act simultaneously on individuals. This study constructed an analytical framework with personal norms as the independent variable, emotions as the mediating variable, and weight control as the moderating variable from a cognitive perspective. A stratified regression approach was used to analyze 835 validated questionnaires on food waste at the consumption level (outside the home) that were collected from across China. The results showed that (1) Chinese consumer personal norms about eating at restaurants and outside the home exacerbated food waste behavior; (2) consumer emotions mediated the effect of personal norms on food waste behavior; and (3) weight control moderated both paths associated with the mediating effect of emotions, and its cubic term had a more significant moderating effect. Policy recommendations are proposed based on the conclusions of this study that will effectively reduce food waste behavior.

Research on the Spatial and Temporal Differences in Public Response to Release-Type Communication to Stop Food Waste

Release-type communication is a common way to guide the public to reduce food waste. It is of great significance to clarify the intervention effect of release-type communication on residents’ waste behavior and reveal the time evolution law of public response to reduce food waste. This study obtains 13,958 comments on food waste through big data mining and explores characteristics of public response to food waste behavior in different time and space from two dimensions of support intention and implementation intention. Through statistical analysis, empirical mode decomposition method, and cross-analysis, we find that: Public concern about release-type communication to stop food waste has experienced five stages: Incubation period, outbreak period, recession period, second outbreak period, and fading period. Overall, the support intention presents a down-up-down trend, the implementation intention rises and then descends, both appear inflection point in recession period. The trend term of empirical mode decomposition shows that the support intention goes down, the implementation intention goes up. Besides, the support intention and implementation intention of release-type communication to stop food waste are generally higher in western China. In particular, the support intention is significantly reduced in Beijing, Guangdong, and Fujian. The implementation intention is significantly increased in Shanghai, while it’s reduced notably in Shandong. This study provides important implications for guiding the public to reduce food waste, the government should formulate differentiated governance strategies to guide the public to reduce food waste according to the time change characteristics and spatial territorial differences of the public on release-type communication.

Segmenting U.S. Consumers by Food Waste Attitudes and Behaviors: Opportunities for Targeting Reduction Interventions

Segmenting U.S. Consumers by Food Waste Attitudes and Behaviors: Opportunities for Targeting Reduction Interventions

FOOD WASTE BEHAVIOR OF ORGANIC FOOD CONSUMERS IN TURKEY

The amount of food lost or wasted is increasing in the world. While the problem of food waste is alarming, the existence of people suffering from hunger reveals the problem of the efficient allocation of food. Not only food waste is an economic problem, it is also an environmental problem. Thus, reducing food waste behaviour will be crucial in promoting sustainability and fighting against climate change. A widespread sustainable agricultural food production method is organic agriculture. The organic food demand is globally increasing with one of the main motivation, environmental concern. Organic consumers motivated to contribute to the environment and sustainability are also part of sustainable consumption. In this study, we reveal the food waste behaviour of organic food consumers. We have conducted an econometric analysis using data from 250 organic food consumers in five main districts of Istanbul. Our findings indicate that the frequency of organic food consumption negatively correlates with food waste. We see a general trend of low food waste among organic consumers, whereas their food waste behaviour varies regarding their organic food consumption frequency and product types.

Quantitative ABCD Analysis of Consumers’ Intention toward Mitigation of Food Waste in Restaurants

Purpose: The primary goal of the ABCD Analysis Framework is to discover the variables that affect customers' intentions to mitigate food waste while dining in restaurants and to assess the underlying determinants and issues that underpin the model's advantages, benefits, challenges, and disadvantages. An appropriate score / weightage can be given for each component utilizing the ABCD model. Additionally, the framework intends to apply factor analysis and elementary analysis to get additional understanding of the subject. Design: The published papers pertaining to the ABCD analysis framework have been extensively evaluated for this study. By giving proper weight to key attributes and using quantitative analysis through focus group interaction, the study was able to identify the key influencing variables and essential constituent aspects for the mitigation of food waste behaviour of consumers in restaurants. Findings: Based on the ABCD analysis framework, it was discovered that many businesses and individuals adopt this new kind of approach that promotes sustainability or survival to get through their serious issues and find short relief. Through focus group discussions, the ABCD framework's assessment of consumers' intentions to reduce food waste has led to strong support for the advantages elements. Therefore, the results of this model will help back up the effectiveness of the mitigation of food waste in restaurants. Originality/Value: The ABCD analysis method is used in this study to closely investigate consumers' intentions to reduce food waste while dining in restaurants. In order to comprehend the many aspects influencing customers' intention to mitigate food waste, the research utilizes determinant issues, key attributes, factor analysis and elementary analysis based on essential critical constituent elements. Paper Type: Empirical analysis.

Development and validation of the motivation to avoid food waste scale

Food waste is one of society’s biggest problems, with huge ecological, economic and social consequences. Hence, there is a necessity to derive a better insight in how consumers can be triggered to avoid food waste. Although it is generally known that motivations are important drivers of human behavior, limited attention has been paid to motivations in the food waste context and no viable measurement instrument exists that systematically takes into account the different motivations underlying the avoidance of food waste. Current scales related to food waste concern encompass attitude and awareness items only. The current paper aims to fill this gap and develops a 21-item Motivation to Avoid Food Waste (MAFW) scale. Since consumers may be driven by different motivations to avoid food waste, special attention is paid to the multidimensionality of food waste avoidance motivations. Specifically, the MAFW-scale consists of four motivations: environmental, moral, financial and social motivations. Three studies demonstrate the scale’s internal reliability, test-retest reliability, nomological validity, and predictive validity. The MAFW-scale fosters research into the genesis of consumers’ food waste behaviors, and can serve as a tool to segment and target (un)motivated consumers.