Food for naught: Using the theory of planned behaviour to better understand household food wasting behaviour

Abstract

To better understand food wasting behaviour, the theory of planned behaviour was used to inform the development of a survey which was administered to households in London, Ontario, Canada. Respondent households (n = 1,263) threw out avoidable food waste 4.77 times/week (SD = 4.81, Mdn = 4.0) and 5.89 food portions/week (SD = 5.66, Mdn = 4.0). When asked to choose one of three possible motivators to reduce food wasting behaviour, 58.9% selected reducing monetary loss as their first choice and this was significantly (p < 0.001) higher than both reducing environmental impact (23.9%) and reducing social impacts (17.2%). A linear hierarchical regression analysis (R2= 0.30, p < 0.001) on intention to avoid food waste demonstrated that perceived behavioural control (p < 0.001) and personal norms (p < 0.001) had the greatest positive impact on intention. A linear hierarchical regression analysis (R2= 0.32, p < 0.001) on self-reported food wasting behaviour showed that perceived behavioural control (p < 0.001) and personal attitudes (p < 0.01) resulted in less food wasting behaviour, while more children in a household (p < 0.01) resulted in more food wasting behaviour. Interventions that seek to strengthen perceived behavioural control and convey the monetary impact of food waste could help reduce its disposal.