Consumer perspectives on household food waste reduction campaigns

Food waste places pressure on the environment, costing communities and households substantial amounts of money. Yet, many previous studies rely on expert opinions to inform campaign design. To affect change, researchers and practitioners need to be open to alternative ways of thinking, including the views of the consumers. This paper extends research pathways traditionally applied in social marketing and co-design processes to consumers in the context of household food waste reduction. To offer a fresh perspective on current practice, we conducted a mixed-method formative research study as follows: co-design (Study 1; N = 21), A-B comparison study via an online survey (Study 2; N = 414), and a fridge audit (Study 3; N = 197). Addressing a gap in previous expert-led campaigns, our study incorporates consumer views on food waste campaigns. Findings indicate consumers prefer: (a) targeting leftover-reuse behaviour, (b) using technology and avoiding door-knocking as a campaign strategy and (c) a focus on reducing fruit and vegetable waste. This study demonstrates the value of applying social marketing and the co-design process to the issue of household food waste. A point of difference associated with the social marketing approach employed in this study is the active participation of the consumers in campaign development. This paper offers rich information for researchers and/or practitioners that can guide program development, based on verified consumer expectations and has potential to benefit campaign effectiveness.