Food Waste in the UK
Food waste is a hot topic these days and many policies have been issued across the UK to address this issue. In fact, I found that in many places food is inevitably wasted and this wasteful behaviour does not seem to be improving, so I carried out research on this topic.
Through questionnaires, I found that this behaviour was related to their habits and experiences. Most people had a relatively vague idea of food waste - compared to issues such as plastic pollution.
Participants said they were reasonably aware of the environmental burden of food waste, but criticised the lack of available information, or at least the lack of access to actual relevant data. Many pointed to a clear need for transparency in how companies communicate about the environmental impact of their products. In the open chat, participants agreed that the best and only way to communicate before the destination is through the packaging and the company website.
Subjects / target groups - GenZ
Why Gen Z was chosen as a target group: they have the potential to reconfigure their food consumption patterns in light of climate issues. Most changes, such as physical, developmental and social, occur at this particular age. (Stanes)
It is argued that as young people aged 17-25 often have to leave their parents' homes, this increases the responsibility of the young people themselves and creates opportunities for the development of sustainable consumption habits. generation Z grew up during the technology boom of the millennium and are therefore comfortable with and dependent on technology in most aspects of their lives. As such, they can be seen as early adopters of new technology-mediated solutions for waste food applications.
Findings of the Research Subjects
The study was divided into two groups, A and B. The members of group A were ECA CAFE diners: for group A, the most important aspect of food choice was considered to be cost, taste rather than health - many of the vegetables in the meal were wasted, and for other food items they tended to eat up the more expensive burgers with leftover fries and soup. Most of their food waste is unconscious - they eat most of what they eat and they think the rest is too small/cheap to be considered waste. Their waste was more influenced by external factors, such as being pressed for time or having a limited choice of portions to eat. They are less influenced by their mood, which is also related to their purpose - they only eat to fill up.
Group B served as a control group for Group A. I conducted observations on them at fast food restaurants in different locations: Group B highlighted the impact of environment, purpose, and planning on food waste. The portability of the food greatly influenced the likelihood of this food being wasted. The potential influence of peers, loss of attention, emotional impact on appetite, and unplanned events also contributed to more food waste.
Summary of data:
Barriers to the development of sustainable habits are related to the following:
- Large size of food packaging, prizes/discounts on food
- Unplanned activities
- Planned or unplanned meal portions
- Knowledge: cooking skills, how to dispose of leftovers, trying new recipes
- Existing routines when changing eating habits
- Social issues (e.g. gender or generational stereotypes, 'old-fashioned' family values)
- Economic situation
The opportunity to develop sustainable habits is linked to this:
Providing specific information, counselling and education on the
- the environmental impact of certain foods, the carbon footprint of
- similar foods for effortless comparison
- nutritional requirements and dietary advice
The three biggest barriers to reducing food waste in GenZ are clearly large packaged foods, planned or unplanned consumption, and lack of knowledge about food preparation. Of these, in addition to the temptation to accept offers to buy, large sized food is the main key issue for this particular age group. These three points will be the main issues to be tackled in the solution.
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