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Introduction. Household food waste is a primary worldwide concern; however, in developing countries, quantitative information on this matter is scarce. This study aimed to provide baseline information on consumer behaviour, practices, beliefs, and attitudes associated with ground beef waste in Mexican households. Materials and methods. Field data came from a survey of 740 consumers from two major Mexican cities. A survey was administered to consumers willing to answer, and they had five fixed options to select from in the questions related to reasons for awareness and for disposing of minced beef at home. Statistical analysis was performed using Chi-square. Results and discussion. Consumers were asked to choose from the survey the option closest to their opinion. The results indicate that more than 75% of the respondents were households with 3-5 members, comprising mostly children ≤10 years old and a smaller proportion of people aged 70 and over. Only 33% buy ground meat packaged and displayed in open refrigerated cabinets in supermarkets, while the rest, 67%, purchase it from local butchers. The best-before date was considered an important parameter as it reports the level of freshness of the meat and its positive impact on health. In contrast, for >50% of respondents, meat waste is associated with cleaning activities. Discarding or throwing away ground meat in Mexican households can occur within a few days of purchase, and can also be related to inadequate preservation and refrigeration practices. Major reasons for consumer awareness of household food waste were associated with guilt feelings (73.0%) and damage to the environment (71.6%), whilst rotten meat and leftovers not eaten were linked to discarding ground meat. Household refrigerator malfunctions and buying in excess occasionally influenced perishable food waste. There are significant relationships between food wastage and various activities, such as purchasing practices, preparation methods, attitudes, and lifestyles associated with eating habits. Reasons that could be related to wastage are prolonged storage of raw meat, finished of the expiry date and disgust. In addition, other related aspects focus on compulsive buying, coupled with a need for more planning and prioritizing the purchase of large packages. Conclusion. Any program related to reducing minced meat waste in households must include the design of governmental and non-governmental policies that impact all links in the supply chain, especially on the final consumer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To contribute to a better understanding of consumer food leftovers and to facilitate their reduction in out-of-home settings, our study analyzes the effects of two common intervention strategies for reducing leftovers in a holistic behavioral model. Based on a quasi-experimental baseline-intervention design, we analyzed how the display of information posters and the reduction of portion sizes take an effect on personal, social and environmental determinants in a structural equation model. Applying data from online surveys and observations among 880 guests (503 baseline, 377 intervention) during two weeks in a university canteen, the suggested model allows to assign effects from the two interventions on plate leftovers to specific changes in behavioral determinants. Portion size reductions for target dishes are found to relate to lower levels of plate waste based on conscious perception, represented in smaller portion size ratings. Effects from seeing information posters are found to base on changed personal attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control. However, depending on how an individual reacts to the information (by only making an effort to finish all food or by making an effort and additionally choosing a different dish in the canteen) there are opposite effects on these determinants and consequently also on plate leftovers. Overall, the differentiated results on intervention effects strongly support the benefits of more holistic and in-depth analyses of interventions to reduce plate leftovers and therefore to contribute to more sustainable food consumption in out-of-home settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serving larger portions leads to increased food and energy intake, but little is known about strategies to moderate this response. This study tested how the effect of portion size on meal intake was influenced by providing the option to take away uneaten food in a "doggy bag" (to-go container). Women were randomly assigned to one of two subject groups: a To-Go Group (n = 27) that was informed before each meal that their leftover food would be packaged to take away after the meal, and a Control Group (n = 26) that was not given this option. In a crossover design, subjects came to the lab once a week for four weeks to eat a dinner composed of five foods. Across meals, the portion size of all foods was varied (100%, 125%, 150%, and 175% of baseline). Results showed that the portion size effect, defined as the trajectory of intake across the weight of food served, differed significantly by subject group (P ≤ 0.025). In the Control Group, increasing the portion size of all foods led to substantial increases in intake (P < 0.0001); for every 100 g added to the baseline portion, women in this group consumed an additional mean (±SEM) of 64 ± 12 g of food and 90 ± 19 kcal, until intake leveled off. In contrast, intake of women in the To-Go Group increased by only 17 ± 12 g and 19 ± 18 kcal for every additional 100 g served; these increases did not differ significantly from zero (P > 0.15). Thus, the effect of portion size on intake was attenuated in the To-Go Group compared to the Control Group. These data indicate that packaging uneaten food after a meal could be an effective strategy to reduce overconsumption from large portions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approximately one quarter of the food supplied for human consumption is wasted across the food supply chain. In the high income countries, the food waste generated at the household level represents about half of the total food waste, making this level one of the biggest contributors to food waste. Yet, there is still little evidence regarding the determinants of consumers' food waste behaviour. The present study examines the effect of psycho-social factors, food-related routines, household perceived capabilities and socio-demographic characteristics on self-reported food waste. Survey data gathered among 1062 Danish respondents measured consumers' intentions not to waste food, planning, shopping and reuse of leftovers routines, perceived capability to deal with household food-related activities, injunctive and moral norms, attitudes towards food waste, and perceived behavioural control. Results show that perceived behavioural control and routines related to shopping and reuse of leftovers are the main drivers of food waste, while planning routines contribute indirectly. In turn, the routines are related to consumers' perceived capabilities to deal with household related activities. With regard to intentional processes, injunctive norms and attitudes towards food waste have an impact while moral norms and perceived behavioural control make no significant contribution. Implications of the study for initiatives aimed at changing consumers' food waste behaviour are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The FridgeMatch prototype was an educational experiment in rethinking the future of sharing food and eating together (commensality) from a design and a Science Technology Society studies (STS) perspectives. We designed a new practice of mediating food over social networks, which reflected related phenomena of underground restaurants, crowdsourcing of food information and persuasive apps supporting various dieting practices etc. With this prototype we supported ad hoc interactions over impromptu dinners based on sharing data on food leftovers, which enabled commensality between strangers. The project was part of a series of workshops between several universities and local hackerspaces in Singapore, Prague and Amsterdam in 2010–2011. We involved university students, but also local foodies and hackerspace members and asked them to reflect upon existing food online networks and then collectively create a prototype for a novel form of commensality. While as an educational probe, FridgeMatch examines the possibilities of interdisciplinary (design and STS) case study approach to teaching, as a prototype it supported interaction between strangers over food leftovers in their refrigerators. With this probe and prototype we tried to follow and understand the emergent actor-network relations between leftovers (their ethics and economy), Facebook app (technologically mediated forms of interactions between strangers), refrigerators (as an important site of everyday practices), and the users (lifestyles in the modern city). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A significant negative relationship exists between age and food waste. • This is caused mainly by younger generations' lack food management skills. • Younger generations are more likely to make impulsive purchases. • Interventions should focus on leftover use, fridge/freezer management and storing. There are generational differences in beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours with respect to food consumption and waste in households. Understanding these generational differences is necessary to be able to effectively combat household food waste. However, there is a deficit in studies that focus on these differences. To address this gap, we analysed survey results from 2187 households and interviews with 16 international experts to understand how food management skills and food waste behaviours are influenced by various generational groups. Findings support a significant negative relationship between age and food waste, that is, younger generations tend to waste more food. Increase in young consumers food waste is caused by lack of food management skills in the areas of shopping, storing, and cooking with leftovers. To encourage changes which support reducing food waste, it is recommended the messages targeting young consumers be communicated via combinations of intergenerational storytelling, web and smart phone-based Apps, and videos suitable for sharing on social media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plate leftovers are an extensive source of food waste in restaurants. One solution to reduce this waste would be that consumers take plate leftovers home (i.e., use doggy bags). Yet, existing social norms in many countries and feelings of shame currently inhibit consumers from using doggy bags. The present research examines whether switching to an opt-out system, whereby consumers are offered a doggy bag by default, can decrease these feelings of shame and positively affect doggy-bag uptake. Yet, next to these positive effects, negative firm-related consequences may occur. Consumers may perceive a limitation in their freedom of choice, which can negatively affect their evaluations of the restaurant and its service staff. A series of five experiments (total n = 1166) shows that an opt-out strategy increases doggy-bag uptake more (on average 74% uptake compared to 27% for an opt-in strategy) than offering an explicit choice to consumers (average 49% uptake), but that an opt-out strategy indeed has negative effects on restaurant and service staff evaluations. Our research also shows that by (1) giving consumers a subordinate choice (e.g., a choice between different types of doggy bags) and by (2) providing friendly service when presenting the doggy bags, restaurants can ensure an effective doggy-bag uptake without detrimental effects on restaurant or service staff evaluations, or on household food waste. These findings provide new and valuable insights for research on food waste and on influence strategies towards sustainable behaviors. • An opt-out strategy increases doggy bag uptake and thereby can reduce plate waste. • An opt-out strategy can have negative effects on restaurant and waitress evaluation. • Providing a subordinate choice (between doggy bags) increases doggy bag uptake. • The subordinate choice strategy has no detrimental effects on evaluations. • Regardless of influencing strategy, people consume food from doggy bags at home. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most literature on food waste shows that food that ends up in the garbage can is often no longer considered as enjoyable, or even as edible. In this paper, we decided to focus on assessments of whether leftover food is still considered as worth eating, to provide a better understanding of the production of domestic food waste. We constructed a pluridisciplinary approach, combining sensory analysis and sociology. The first part was conducted in a test kitchen under controlled conditions: 50 participants had to sort out and decide to keep or to throw away different types of refrigerated leftovers. The second part used in-depth interviews with half of these participants (N = 25) to explore their food habits and perceptions and handling of leftovers at home. The first section of the paper presents the theoretical framework of the study, which is grounded in practice theory. Then we detail the methodology and the results. We show that sorting out leftovers is a process mobilizing embodied knowledge and resulting from domestic practices implemented to avoid waste, such as storing or reusing leftovers. In the discussion, we analyze the sorting of refrigerated food products as a compound practice, situated at the intersection of provisioning, cooking, meal organization, and judgment of taste (Warde, 2013). Using this theoretical framework enables us to understand the heterogeneity observed in the outcome of the sorting process as the result of its weak degree of regulation. The sorting out practice is thus consistent with different modes of engagement such as food waste prevention, health maintenance, or providing enjoyable family meals. We conclude by providing suggestions of policy recommendations regarding domestic refrigeration, food storage, and assessment practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hospitality literature is quite deficient in insights on consumer behaviour towards food waste generation and its mitigation in out-of-home dining. The present study addresses this gap by undertaking a mixed-method study to examining a broad spectrum of diners' behaviour, beginning from planning the meal and ending with bringing the leftovers home. To this end, it utilises the Stimulus-Organism-Response theory to conceptualise the association of planning routine, food-ordering routine, motives, attitude, and behaviour of taking away leftovers and throwing away leftovers. The results of analysis of the data collected from 276 diners in the United States confirm a positive association of food-ordering and planning routines with motives, which, in turn, are positively associated with attitude and the behaviour of taking away leftovers. Finally, attitude is not only negatively associated with throwing away leftovers but also partially mediates the association of motives with throwing leftovers away. Our findings provide useful inputs for businesses and researchers to motivate green consumer behaviour. • Examines leftover takeaway attitude and behaviour through the stimulus-organism-response (SOR) paradigm. • Food-ordering and planning routines act as stimuli positively associated with motives for taking away leftovers. • Motives associate positively with attitude towards and behaviour of taking away leftovers in doggy bags. • Attitude as a response negatively associates with throwing away leftovers brought home. • Attitude partially mediates the association of motives with throwing away leftovers brought home. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Household food waste occupies the lion share of the total food waste in developed countries and engenders substantial economic and environmental costs around the globe. It is a complex, multifaceted problem and is a key component of national food waste reduction plans. Although the factors that influence food waste are known, the magnitude of their relative effect on household food waste is not well understood. Using a large national-level data set (n = 3756) and a count regression modelling approach, this paper analyses a range of behavioural and socio-demographic factors that influence household food waste in Australia. Findings reveal that food storage practices, leftover cooking skills, dining out behaviour, grocery spending and the frequency of grocery shopping are significant drivers of food waste at the household level. The study concludes that household food waste reduction strategies should focus on routinised food-related behaviours and initiatives on improving overall food management skills in order to reduce food waste effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]