Usage of online food delivery in food waste generation in China during the crisis of COVID-19

Abstract

This study connects food waste (FW) with online food delivery (OFD) service and aims to explore the impacts of the usage of OFD service on FW generation in China during the COVID-19 lockdown period. Through responses from 123 consumers of OFD service in China, results show that the usage of OFD service did not accelerate FW generation in China during the COVID-19 lockdown period. We found that consumers tended to order excessive food when using OFD services for some economic reasons before the pandemic, which was a significant driver behind FW generation in the OFD segment. However, most consumers admitted that they tended to stockpile food at the beginning of the lockdown period. Because of the impacts of COVID-19 on consumer appetite and portion size, there was an overall decrease in FW generation during the COVID-19 lockdown period in China. Therefore, it is suggested that restaurants provide adjusted portions of ordered food based on the scientific investigation or provide more pre-packaged food for a long shelf-life. Consequently, these measures will lead to less FW generation in the OFD service segment in China.