A National Strategy to Reduce Food Waste at the Consumer Level (2020) / Chapter Skim
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4 Interventions to Reduce Food Waste at the Consumer Level
4 Interventions to Reduce Food Waste at the Consumer Level
Pages 97-126
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From page 97... ...
The committee searched the relevant literature for insights that can support the development of effective interventions to reduce food waste. As with the research on drivers of consumer behavior (see Chapter 3)
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From page 98... ...
. Similarly, a meta-analysis of behavior change interventions related to weight loss suggests that addressing motivation (e.g., with a communication style that addresses the motivation)
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From page 99... ...
The first, a small-scale study, examines waste reduction behaviors at home, at work, and on vacation, and shows that in the latter two contexts, people are less motivated to act proenvironmentally and perceive that they have less control over barriers to such behaviors than they do at home (Whitmarsh et al., 2018)
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From page 100... ...
4 to organize and interpret and compare the results of the studies (see definitions in Appendix G) : • appealing to values, • engaging consumers, • evoking social comparison, • providing feedback, • providing financial incentives, • modifying the choice architecture (i.e., nudges)
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From page 101... ...
. REVIEW OF THE EVIDENCE FROM THE FOOD WASTE LITERATURE The committee conducted an extensive literature search to identify studies that assessed the effects of interventions intended to reduce food waste at the consumer level.
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From page 102... ...
2. Was wasted food measured (not just changes in intentions to waste or in behaviors that could reduce food waste)
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From page 103... ...
Comments on the Evidence The interventions covered in the committee's review were designed to operate in a range of contexts: at the household level; at establishments where individuals eat (i.e., food service settings) ; at other levels of the supply chain that could influence consumer behavior (e.g., food retailers or farmers' markets)
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From page 104... ...
However, many of the studies examine designs that make use of more than one intervention type; many also address more than one of the three elements of the MOA framework. Although the available studies do not address multiple stages within the food supply chain, they do support the idea that multiple strategies may reinforce each other in an effort to effect change.
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From page 105... ...
Applying the MOA Framework The committee next considered the relationship between the seven intervention types listed earlier (appealing to values, engaging consumers, evoking social comparison, providing feedback, providing financial incentives, modifying the choice architecture [i.e., nudges] , and providing how-to information)
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From page 106... ...
Second, both figures highlight the dominance of intervention types that operate to increase consumer motivation (i.e., appeals, social comparison, feedback) : more than half the studies reviewed feature at least one intervention linked to motivation.
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From page 107... ...
INTERVENTIONS TO REDUCE FOOD WASTE 107 FIGURE 4-3A Strength of the evidence base for the seven types of intervention. FIGURE 4-3B Distribution of intervention studies by setting (in-home versus retail and food service)
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From page 108... ...
. Twenty-five of the 64 studies reviewed by the committee included appeal interventions: 13 that used explicit appeals, 3 that used implicit appeals, and 9 that used both and other intervention types.
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From page 109... ...
. Several food service interventions were also comprehensive, involving food service personnel and patrons (Strotmann et al., 2017, tier 2)
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From page 110... ...
Seven of the studies reviewed (three tier 1) featured feedback interventions, largely as part of multifaceted interventions implemented in food service settings.
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From page 111... ...
that involved such interventions, most of which addressed food service settings. The nudge interventions studied operated by means of diverse mechanisms, including shifting perceived quantity, altering appeal, or changing the default/easiest action.
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From page 112... ...
, although none of the studies reviewed examined such interventions. Overall, the evidence for nudge interventions focused on shifting food quantity and appeal is stronger than that for any of the other intervention types, with statistically significant effect sizes being documented in multiple studies of this intervention type.
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From page 113... ...
The interventions studied were fairly evenly divided between household and food service settings. In most cases, the guidance provided included multiple how-to tips targeting different strategies for reducing food waste or preserving food longer.
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From page 114... ...
Yet as the evidence discussed in this chapter demonstrates, the literature evaluating interventions to reduce food waste is relatively small, and high-quality experiments are sparse, although rapidly developing. The broader body of research on interventions in the six related domains considered by the committee and the smaller, emerging body of work specific to food waste, are being carried out in a variety of fields and research traditions (see Chapter 1)
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From page 115... ...
Moreover, the food waste literature is not yet substantial enough to support a firm conclusion that bundled interventions are uniformly more effective than single interventions. Nonetheless, the existing evidence certainly suggests the value of integrating multiple intervention types.
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From page 116... ...
and elements of the MOA framework involved in those behaviors, can guide the design of future interventions. Relative Effectiveness of Intervention Types The types of interventions that have been most effective in the six related domains are varied, suggesting that many types can be effective depending on contextual factors.
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From page 117... ...
Those limita tions include limited field-based research; the small scale of the studies; lack of long-term evaluation; the diverse approaches used in measuring wasted food; lack of a systems approach, including implementation of diverse intervention types and measurement of trade-offs; lack of atten tion to distributional and equity considerations; and limited consider ation of implementation. Replication in a range of U.S.
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From page 118... ...
of Efficacy in Reducing Food Wastea,b Intervention Examples Appeals With evidence: • Delivering materials with appeal combined with other messaging intervention types (such as information, feedback) direct to residents • Providing food systems education to students and having them contribute to the design of a poster with an appeal message • Sharing information about harms of food waste • Requesting diners to reduce portions, take less food, or take more trips to the buffet With suggestive evidence: • Using a self-affirmation intervention to increase receptivity to food waste prevention messages • Displaying posters encouraging university diners not to take food they would not eat • Displaying posters triggering negative social emotions associated with wasting • Linking altruistic or virtue messages with waste prevention Engagement With evidence: • Engaging schoolteachers and students through curriculum and related projects to deepen understanding of and personal commitment to reducing food waste • Engaging food service workers, managers, and patrons to deepen understanding of the magnitude and consequences of food waste and to jointly develop solutions customized to their food service setting Social Comparisons With suggestive evidence: • Using social interactions and shared values to promote waste reduction among multiple partners in community • Reducing the social stigma of requesting a box for restaurant leftovers by having the server offer it • Using public commitments as a way to be accountable • Using public demonstrations of results through such interventions as bin cameras Feedback With suggestive evidence: • Providing personalized feedback about the success of waste reduction efforts as part of a broader set of intervention strategies
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From page 119... ...
bThe committee urges caution in extrapolating the information in this table to generalized statements about the efficacy and effectiveness of these interventions, which will depend on many other factors.
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From page 120... ...
In addition, many studies focus on intentions rather than actual wasted food. Findings from the literature in the six related domains indicate clearly that intentions are not a valid proxy for actual behavior.
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From page 121... ...
. Most interventions studied (about two-thirds)
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From page 122... ...
It is also necessary to assess the effects of interventions on those not directly targeted, including food service staff (some interventions create extra work, such as in washing dishes, which might need to be compensated) and recipients of donated food (the amount and quality of such food may change as businesses shift their practices)
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From page 123... ...
2019. Toward cleaner plates: A study of plate waste in food service.
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From page 124... ...
2017. Exploring effective incentive design to reduce food waste: A natural experiment of policy change from community based charge to RFID based weight charge.
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From page 125... ...
2019. Healthy planet, healthy youth: A food systems education and promotion intervention to improve adolescent diet quality and reduce food waste.
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From page 126... ...
2019. "Reduce food waste, save money": Testing a novel intervention to reduce household food waste.
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