Reducing food waste for environmental sustainability: study in Indonesia

Abstract

Food waste is one of the problems that must be resolved immediately considering the difficulty of this type of waste to be reprocessed. Food waste has negative economic, social and environmental consequences and occurs most often during the consumption stage, especially in households. Thus, to assist Indonesian policies aimed at minimizing food waste, the purpose of this research is to comprehend consumer food waste behavior (FWB). This study explains this phenomenon using awareness, knowledge, and the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). The results of analysis from 205 Indonesian respondents using PLS-SEM found that attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control had a significant influence on food waste avoidance intention (FWAI) which ultimately could minimize FWB. However, it has been demonstrated that awareness has little impact on consumer understanding, which in turn has no impact on FWAI and FWB. These results can provide an idea for regulators in Indonesia regarding the variables that must be influenced so that consumer behavior can be changed, and food waste can be reduced. The results of this investigation also contribute to realizing Goal No. 12 of the Sustainable Development Agenda, which is responsible for production and consumption.