Retail Food Waste and Consumer Quality Preferences

Investigators:
Carola Grebitus, Katya Stoliarova

Contact Information:
estolyar@asu.edu

Overview:
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. wastes nearly 31% of edible food every year with approximately one-third lost at the retail level which has devastating social and environmental consequences. Retailers make their decisions regarding the amount of food to be discounted, donated to local food banks, or discarded based on their understanding of consumer quality preferences in different product categories. For example, retailers discard large portions of their fresh produce with small appearance defects assuming that consumers will not be willing to buy it or that it will harm their reputation. Moreover, retailers assume that the presence of “imperfect” products on retail shelves will significantly decrease the consumers’ willingness to pay for regular items. Existing literature provides an overview of consumer preferences with respect to different quality tiers, yet does not consider the effects of “imperfect” food on demand for regular items and retailers’ overall image. In this research project, our goal is to examine whether retailers’ assumptions about consumer quality preferences hold for fresh produce. Examining retailers’ assumptions will allow us to draw conclusions on how retailers can optimize their pricing strategies, decrease the number of unsold items, and eventually minimize the volume of food wasted.