Skip to content

household consumption

Credit: Food and Agriculture Organisation, 2011

A significant contributor to the high prevalence of food wastage in developed countries occurs mostly in our homes. In America, families throw out approximately 25% of food and beverages they buy. That is an average of $2,275 wasted annually! The graph above provides a clear depiction of food waste from consumer loss to be one of the biggest contributor. But what are the possible reasons that contributes to consumers and household food wastage in Singapore?

  • Lack of awareness and undervaluing of foods

Little value is placed when purchasing food in this time and day due to cheap, available food all around. Consequentially, the issue of food wastage is thus not considered as important by many consumers, even those who considers themselves to be pro-environmentalist. Moreover, as food in Singapore is accessible and plentiful, people tend to think little about the associated cost of throwing unfinished food away. They may also not be overly concerned with finishing their food before expiration, or could have ditched planned meals with ingredients bought for impromptu plans. Singaporeans might not be aware of their own contribution to food wastage, or the negative implications as it is not on our radar to consciously be aware of the amount of resources devoted to handling wasted food.

  • Confusion over label dates

Often, label dates on food packaging generally are not regulated and does not seem to be indicative food safety. Multiple dates, inconsistent usage and the lack of education surrounding date labels causes consumers to discard food prematurely. In the UK, about 20% of avoidable food waste is discarded because of confusion from date labels. Furthermore, the confusion of “sell by”, “used by” and “best before” are often the cause of confusion for consumers.

  • Impulse and bulk purchase

“Buy 3 Get 1 Free” or “Buy 2 at $10, U.P $15” is a common sight upon entering supermarkets. Store promotions leading to bulk purchases or purchases of unusual products often results in consumers buying food outside their typical meal planning. This inevitably gets food discarded even before they are consumed. These marketing gimmicks adds pressure to consumers to not “miss out on the good deal”.

In addition, when consumers do not keep track of their stock at home, the pressures from the marketing gimmick results in impulsive purchase, which further exacerbates the disposal of food waste that aren’t consumed.

Skip to toolbar