Abstract:In the past decade, food waste has received increased attention on both academic and societal levels. As a cause of negative economic, environmental and social effects, food waste is considered to be one of the sustainability issues that needs to be addressed. In developed countries, consumers are one of the biggest sources of food waste. To successfully reduce consumer-related food waste, it is necessary to have a clear understanding of the factors influencing food waste-related consumer perceptions and behaviors. The present paper presents the results of a literature review and expert interviews on factors causing consumer-related food waste in households and supply chains. Results show that consumers' motivation to avoid food waste, their management skills of food provisioning and food handling and their trade-offs between priorities have an extensive influence on their food waste behaviors. We identify actions that governments, societal stakeholders and retailers can undertake to reduce consumer-related food waste, highlighting that synergistic actions between all parties are most promising. Further research should focus on exploring specific food waste contexts and interactions more in-depth. Experiments and interventions in particular can contribute to a shift from analysis to solutions. OPEN ACCESSSustainability 2015, 7 6458

Abstract:The growing volumes of food globally lost or wasted and implications for food security and sustainability have raised the concern of researchers, governments, international organizations and grass-root movements. Much research and experiences investigating food waste causes and drivers focus on one specific segment of the food supply chain and limit the analysis to the situation of one or few countries, while the few studies of wider geographical scope also target other relevant and diversified objectives (e.g., food waste definition, quantification, environmental and economic impacts, and recommendations for interventions). This study, carried out by a network of European institutions involved in research and initiatives against food waste, focuses on the analysis of a broad area, Europe, through a wide and systematic literature review and consultation with stakeholders in international focus groups. The food supply chain was divided into seven segments and three main contexts were defined for the examination of food waste sources: Technological, Institutional (related to organisational factors, i.e., business management, economy, legislation, and policy), and Social (related to consumers' behaviours and lifestyles). Results suggest a wide and multifaceted problem, interconnected across all stages of the food supply chain, from primary production, to final consumption. Within each context, the identified drivers have been grouped according to the possibilities and the type of interventions for food waste reduction. A final cross-contextual prioritization distinguished food waste sources related to (A) inherent characteristics of food; (B) social and economic factors; (C) individual non-readily changeable behaviours; (D) other priorities targeted by private and public stakeholders; (E) diversified factors, such as mismanagement, inefficient legislation, lack of awareness or information; and sub-optimal use of available technologies, which could be more promptly changed. Such diversification of causes calls for specific monitoring systems, targeted policy measures, and actions of individual stakeholders at each stage of the food supply chain.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a “network” framing of food supply arrangements. Such frameworks have been asked for in previous research as supplements to prevailing supply chain conceptualizations. Design/methodology/approach – The framework builds on industrial network theory. According to this approach, business reality is analyzed in three inter-related dimensions: the activities undertaken, the resources used for this undertaking, and the actors controlling resources and activities. For each dimension, relevant concepts are derived for analysis of the features of food supply and food waste. Findings – The network framing was useful for analyzing the prerequisites and consequences for two approaches to reduce food waste: one based on extension of shelf-life, the other relying on enhanced responsiveness in the supply arrangement. The framework was then used for suggesting managerial actions to reduce food waste through increasing activity coordination, resource combining, and actor interaction with consideration of potential consequences of such actions. Practical implications – Managerial issues in food supply are discussed with regard to the role of activity coordination, the role of resource combining, and the role of actor interaction in efforts to prevent food waste. Originality/value – The paper suggests a novel approach for analyzing food supply networks with particular focus on food waste reduction. Such framings are applied in other supply systems, and requested by food supply researchers.

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