Systematic literature review of best practice in food waste reduction programs

Purpose Food waste is a systemic problem, with waste occurring at all stages in the supply chain and consumption process. There is a need to unpack which strategies, approaches and tools can be applied to reduce the amount of food wasted. Understanding the extent of social marketing principles used offers insights into the additional means that can be applied to increase voluntary behavioral change. Design/methodology/approach Following preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses guidelines, a systematic quantitative literature review was undertaken focused on outcome evaluation studies conducted since 2000. Six databases were examined, and cross rating was used to identify previous programs tackling food waste behavior at a household level. A total of 23 programs were analyzed against 8 social marketing components. Findings Overall, only 2 out of 23 food waste programs self-identified as social marketing programs. A lack of application of social marketing elements was observed across all studies, indicating a tendency to implement non-voluntary change approaches. The most commonly targeted behaviors were source-separation. Personal interaction involved the distribution of information in person (typically through door knocking). Personal interaction strategies were identified as the most effective program techniques. Program effectiveness was greater when the social marketing components of behavioral change, theory and marketing mix were used, indicating the potential for voluntary approaches to be applied more in the future. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the current study was the first systematic literature review to examine the extent of social marketing application in food waste programs reported in peer-reviewed academic literature using eight components of social marketing. The study revealed behavioral change was more likely when more social marketing components were used. Future research is recommended to consider the application of full range of social marketing elements to extend beyond involuntary approaches, which can be subjected to criticism from community.