Emma Leask, Zero Waste Scotland and member of CIWM Behaviour Change Specialist Expert Group, explores how reducing food waste can support households with the cost of living.
Food waste in Scotland is no small issue. Tackling the problem is not just important at an environmental level; it can also provide individual households with a substantial economic saving of nearly £500 per household.
The challenge is how to create the right conditions for consumers to adopt behaviours which support food waste reduction and inspire action more easily.
We know different groups of people also have very different drivers and challenges in relation to being able to reduce food waste, so identifying interventions that can be delivered across Scotland is something we are determined to achieve as we strive towards delivering a circular economy.
How do we change unintentional behaviour?
From overbuying products to poor meal planning , improper storage, and cooking and preparing too much, there is a lot to consider when identifying how we are wasting our food.
Over time, behaviours relating to purchasing and consuming food can become ingrained habits as these are often unintentional and difficult to challenge. What’s clear is that we need to work on a range of activities which will make a sizeable difference for households.
Focusing on the behaviours that take place both in the home and during the food acquisition process will be important, and it’s crucial to support people to use their food effectively once it has been purchased.
This isn’t a case of placing blame on consumers, who often have enough on their plate with the demands and pressures of day-to-day life taking priority. We want to highlight the opportunities available to them that will provide economic benefit.
As well as the cost savings, we also know that increasing food-related skills could have knock-on impacts in other areas like health and nutrition, as well as stress reduction.
Zero Waste Scotland has previously explored why some people plan their meals and others don’t, highlighting barriers like time constraints, household influences, lack of skills, and perceptions that meal planning isn’t enjoyable or doesn’t fit with their identity.
Behavioural science can help us understand and tackle these established food waste habits.
Household Intervention Plan for food waste reduction
As part of the Circular Economy Waste Route Map, the Scottish Government is developing a Household Intervention Plan for food waste reduction, supported by Zero Waste Scotland.
This plan represents Scotland’s first comprehensive, evidence-based approach to tackling household food waste. Food waste has the highest impact of all household waste on biodiversity loss and land use, and in Scotland alone, £1.3 billion-worth of food waste is thrown away from our homes every year.
In fact, most food waste in Scotland comes from households, rather than businesses. Our most recent estimate indicated that a total of 1.038 million tonnes of food was disposed of in Scotland in 2021, a slight increase from 2013, with 59% of the total being disposed of by households.
That’s why the focus of this plan is to outline targeted interventions aimed at tackling household food waste and reducing it. The objectives reflect both the scale of the challenge we face and the Scottish Government’s commitment to delivering measurable, sustainable change.
The plan will be supported by a wide range of industry partners and will focus on evidence-based interventions targeting key behaviours and leveraging where most impact could be made.
We know from our research that food waste often happens unintentionally, and by targeting specific behaviours like meal planning, portion control and fridge organisation, we can address the root causes rather than just the symptoms.
However, often these behaviours are shaped by things outside of an individual’s control, from the availability of food to time constraints, and taking a wider lens to the problem and working with stakeholders will be vital in ensuring the plan’s effectiveness.
Our work with these key organisations will allow us to engage with feedback as it guides our longer-term work. This means working with households themselves, local authorities, community groups, retailers, and other food system actors. Everyone has a role to play.
Measuring impact
Understanding if the Household Intervention Plan for food waste reduction is making an impact is something we are considering early on.
We know food waste reduction behaviour is very difficult to measure at a national scale cost-effectively. Tracking measurable changes in the amount of food wasted and the behavioural insights behind the changes will be needed over time.
Monitoring changes in what people are doing and responding to, and what they think is helping them reduce their food waste, are just a couple of examples of how we will assess the impact of the work being done.
The challenge of ensuring this plan has a real impact will be how we inspire individuals to begin to make daily changes to their lives.
We have the research which shows how they will benefit economically from making small changes to their food behaviours, and with the Household Food Waste Intervention Plan, the Scottish Government will have the evidence, network and evaluation tools needed to start making fundamental changes to Scotland’s food waste, for the better.
The economic savings that will result from a reduction of food waste will be significant. And through the food waste intervention plan and behaviour change campaigning, we can see our insights generate a lasting impact on how we manage our food.
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