Food insecurity, food waste, food behaviours and cooking confidence of UK citizens at the start of the COVID-19 lockdown

Abstract

PurposeThe current pilot study explored food insecurity, food waste, food related behaviours and cooking confidence of UK consumers following the COVID-19 lockdown.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from 473 UK-based consumers (63% female) in March 2020. A cross-sectional online survey measured variables including food insecurity prevalence, self-reported food waste, food management behaviours, confidence and frequency of use of a range of cooking methods, type of food eaten (ultra-processed, semi-finished, unprocessed) and packaging type foods are purchased in.Findings39% of participants have experienced some food insecurity in the last 12 months. Being younger, having a greater BMI and living in a smaller household were associated with food insecurity. Green leaves, carrots, potatoes and sliced bread are the most wasted of purchased foods. Polenta, green leaves and white rice are the most wasted cooked foods. Food secure participants reported wasting a smaller percentage of purchased and cooked foods compared to food insecure participants. Overall, participants were most confident about boiling, microwaving and stir-frying and least confident with using a pressure cooker or sous vide. Food secure participants were more confident with boiling, stir-frying, grilling and roasting than insecure food participants.Practical implicationsThis has implications for post lockdown policy, including food policies and guidance for public-facing communications.Originality/valueWe identified novel differences in self-report food waste behaviours and cooking confidence between the food secure and insecure consumers and observed demographics associated with food insecurity.

Increases in Household Food Waste in Canada as a Result of COVID-19: An Exploratory Study

“…Our results indicate that respondents estimated that their household generated slightly less food waste. Research conducted in Italy [12], Tunisia [55], Japan [15], and the United States [71] found that, during the early period of the pandemic, food waste decreased, while research in Serbia [39] and the UK [72] show, in some demographics, that food waste increased. There are several plausible explanations: food purchases were more commonly non-perishable products, consumers' risk aversion caused a greater amount of attention to be given to food consumption habits, such as purchasing more non-perishable products, and a general concern about the impact that the pandemic could potentially have on the waste management system.…”

Resources Management for a Resilient World: A Literature Review of Eastern European Countries with Focus on Household Behaviour and Trends Related to Food Waste

“…They lack knowledge and buy too many ingredients or deliver bad culinary experiences-resulting in food being thrown away; either way, by-myself cooking strategies are pro-waste. We are not sure that homemade vs. delivery meals are easy to put in balance, nevertheless limited improvisation is something cooks should constantly keep in mind [79,80]. An effective possible waste prevention strategy might be one based on meals cooked with products stored at home [23] but using already tested and liked recipes (too much creativity in the kitchen may very well equal a mess).…”

“…Studies show that when it comes to food (including warnings and regular alerts over potential scarcity), parents' education positively influences the importance given to the subject of food waste in adulthood [30]. Having the opportunity to spend holidays in a village, or being involved in agricultural activities; helping parents/grandparents buy/manufacture food and then cook homemade meals; tidying up the houses, and also the domestic animal shelters (this is more the case in Eastern than Western European regions); and learning from an early age how to deal correctly with leftovers, either by using them the next day or by turning them into food for animals, are some basic practices which can have a strong impact on teenagers' relation with food and food wastage [79,84,85]. In addition, inside kitchen activities such as finishing up a plate, washing the dishes, and thinking of the items needed for the next meal manage to empower teenagers in this respect (for the benefit of their families).…”

“…In addition, inside kitchen activities such as finishing up a plate, washing the dishes, and thinking of the items needed for the next meal manage to empower teenagers in this respect (for the benefit of their families). Nevertheless, statistics require better adjustments in terms of age, gender, education level, and economic situation of a determined European region (FLW represents $990 billion a year [86,87]) to draw certain conclusions, particularly since in Western vs. Eastern European comparisons, those children with a good situation and higher level of understanding would be significantly more likely to have a diet made of carbs, meat, vegetables, and fruit more often compared to children less educated and with money difficulties and, surprise, the former (category) are likely to generate more food waste than the latter [79,88]. Here, too, trends were not clearly outlined, as the past seems to shape the present in the studies so far, but the future influences the present of our societies as much as the past [89,90].…”

Has the COVID-19 pandemic changed household food management and food waste behavior? A natural experiment using propensity score matching

“…As in many developed countries, food discarded from Australian household sector is the largest contributor to total food waste across all stages of the supply chain. The pandemic has altered many behaviors including household food provisioning, food management and food disposal behaviors ( Armstrong et al, 2021 ; Babbitt et al, 2021 ; Principato et al, 2022 ).…”