Determination of the factors affecting food waste generation in households and the effect of the intervention on food waste reduction: The case of İzmir city

Food waste represents one of the greatest threats to the sustainability of our food system and can occur at any stage of the supply chain for food. Also, food waste has significant impacts on food security, the environment, and the economy. The study was conducted to analyse the factors affecting household's behaviour towards food waste and to assess the impact of an initiative designed in accordance with the results of the analysis.Multi-stage mixed method was used in the study.During the first stage of the study, a face-to-face questionnaire was administered to households to collect general information and food waste data.After the data collection process with the questionnaire was completed, the households suitable for the sociodemographic variables determined to affect the food waste behaviour were selected after the analysis, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with the volunteers from these households.A waste diary & photographing stage was conducted after these interviews. As a result of the analysis of the interview data, a booklet was prepared to inform the households based on the findings.As a follow-up to the first one-week waste diary & photographing process, informing were conducted, and then a second one-week waste diary & photographing stage was conducted.There were differences in the food waste behaviour scores (FWB) of the participants according to their sociodemographic characteristics, including their age, gender, educational level,employment status, marital status, income level,and the number of women living in the household. Among the individuals with the highest FWB scores, there were 19–29-year-olds, males, undergraduate and graduate level students, employed individuals, single individuals with an income level of 6500-7499 Turkish Liras, and households with one woman living.Increasing shopping frequency and the use of leftovers decrease food waste behaviour, whereas increasing shopping time increases food waste behaviour.Intention not to generate waste is positively influenced by personal attitude, environmental attitude,perceived behavioural control, sense of guilt, and recycling factors while it is negatively affected by food safety attitude (p<0.05).While the most stated reasons for throwing away food at the survey stage by the participants were that the food was moldy, spoiled, etc. and had been kept in the refrigerator for a long time, the main reasons for the formation of food waste before and after the informing were the size of the portion and mold, rot, infestation, etc. in the food.It was found that fresh vegetables,fresh fruits, cooked leftovers, and bread were the foods that were most wasted. The main points mentioned by the households during the interviews were that they were affected by discounts during shopping, they could buy more food than they needed, the waste of fruits and vegetables was excessive, and they were careful about checking the expiration date. Furthermore, households stated that they are motivated to reduce waste to gain economic benefits and to demonstrate empathy, and that education and awareness are necessary at a young age for reducing food waste.Upon providing households with information regarding food waste, it was observed that the frequency of food waste decreased by 26.5% and the amount of food waste decreased by 40.7%.The findings of this study,demonstrated yet again that the behaviour of food waste in households is an issue that must be viewed from a variety of viewpoints. In accordance with the comprehensive information obtained from the study, a solution can be provided for the food waste generated in our country's households, with interventions planned at both the regional and national levels.