Reducing consumer food waste at the consumer level can lessen food insecurity, improve diets, save consumers money, mitigate climate change and raise awareness about the value of food.
Consumers’ food habits are driven by their social networks, the media, the food marketing industry and government policies. Thus, efforts to reduce consumer food waste must involve changes across the entire food system, social networks and the media – not just individual habits.
To better understand consumer food waste, we invested in a National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine (National Academies) study to identify how consumers behave toward food and opportunities for system changes. The multidisciplinary, expert committee conducting the study, chaired by University of California, Davis Professor Emerita Dr. Barbara O. Schneeman, examined existing data, information and research on consumer food waste.
The resulting report includes recommendations that institutions – such as industry associations, schools and government agencies – can implement to help consumers reduce their food waste.