from the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development |
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Buying into the bin: the role of consumers and date labels in the life -- and death -- of food
JAFSCD peer-reviewed article by Jelili A. Adebiyi (Northern Michigan U), Noleen R. Chikowore (U of Leeds), and Angel S. Forde (Tallahassee Community College) |
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A 2021 report from ReFED shows that the U.S. wastes more food than any of the 35 high-income countries studied. Sixty-five percent of the food that is wasted in the U.S. comes from households and consumer-facing businesses. Food waste is driven by a mix of purchasing behaviors and widespread confusion over date labels. Yet, what consumers actually understand about these labels—and why—remains unclear. So does the role of retail marketing tactics, such as individual discounts and multi-buy promotions, in shaping those behaviors and the waste that follows.
In a new JAFSCD article, Buying into waste: The role of consumer food purchasing behaviors, knowledge, attitudes, and opinions concerning food date labels, the authors examine how consumer food purchasing behaviors and widespread confusion over food date labels—particularly “use by,” “best by,” and “sell by”—drives consumer food waste in the U.S., and how targeted retail strategies and more explicit labeling can help address the problem.
Corresponding author Jelili Adebiyi can be contacted at jadebiyi@nmu.edu. Jelili has been a JAFSCD reviewer since 2022.
KEY FINDINGS
Many U.S. consumers still do not understand the difference between “best before” and “use by” dates on food labels, as well as the primary purpose of “best by,” “use by,” and “sell by” dates.
The “use by” date is the most likely to be misconceived and misrepresented by U.S. consumers. Sales promotions encouraging consumers to make excessive purchases for discounts can lead to increased food waste.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY, PRACTICE, AND RESEARCH
The confusion and misrepresentation of food date labels suggest a need for describing the date labels in terms of what they imply and what they do not mean.
Consumers need streamlined, consistent, and easy-to-understand food date labels, especially “use by,” to reduce confusion and waste.
Public awareness campaigns highlighting the climate and environmental costs of food waste could be a key lever for reducing consumer waste in the U.S.
To reduce food waste, U.S. food retailers should rethink promotions and offer individual item discounts instead of bulk-buy sales offers.
Educating U.S. consumers on best practices for safely storing, home-freezing, refrigerating, and defrosting food could help reduce food waste.
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How do confusion over date labels and food purchasing behaviors affect consumer food waste in the U.S.? In a new JAFSCD article, the authors explore how misunderstandings of food labels and purchasing behaviors contribute to food waste and examine strategies for addressing the problem. Read the full @JAFSCD article for free: https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2025.144.021
#foodwaste #foodbuyingbehaviors #datelabels #retailmarketingstrategies Photo above: Food waste in a bin; photo from Adobe Stock and provided by the authors. |
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Adapting the U.S. Food Security Survey Module in a small rural Dominican Republic community as a pilot to assess food insecurity |
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JAFSCD peer-reviewed article by Mesfin Bezuneh (Clark Atlanta U), Zelealem Yiheyis (Clark Atlanta U), Pedro-Juan Del Rosario (Instituto Dominicano De Investigaciones Agropecuarias Y Forestales), and Luis Ortiz (Instituto Dominicano De Investigaciones Agropecuarias Y Forestales)
Food insecurity affects a significant proportion of the population in many countries where farming is 100% subsistence, and production is rain-fed dependent. The concept and measurement of food insecurity at the household and individual levels have been an area of extensive research, and one result has been the development of the Food Security Survey Module (FSSM) in the U.S. The FSSM is now the standard methodology of determining household food security status. One of the purposes of this study is to adapt the U.S. FSSM and assess its validity in the context of a less developed economy. We administered the U.S. FSSM as a pilot in a household survey of 110 low-income families in the Dominican Republic. Corresponding author, Mesfin Bezuneh can be reached for any addition questions mbezuneh@cau.edu.
KEY FINDINGS 93% of the respondents were food-insecure; 80% experienced very low food security (food insecurity with hunger; 89% of households with children faced very low food security (food insecurity with hunger); and The results of this pilot study demonstrate, at a preliminary level, the validity of the FSSM in its adapted and modified form for assessing the degree of food insecurity in the Dominican Republic and in developing countries in general.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY AND PRACTICE
The authors hope that this pilot study in a small rural community of the Dominican Republic will provide preliminary information to researchers and policymakers to establish guardrails that can protect households’ livelihoods against food insecurity shocks.
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A new JAFSCD peer reviewed article brings a pilot study from the #Dominican #Republic. Authors conducted a survey of 110 families in the #DR, using the #U.S. Food Security Survey Module to inform their questionnaire. The authors hope that this pilot study in a small #rural community of the Dominican Republic will provide preliminary information to researchers and #policymakers to establish guardrails that can protect households’ livelihoods against #food #insecurity shocks. To learn more, read the article @JAFSCD https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2025.144.005. Always free, always reliable.
Photo above courtesy of the World Food Program, Dominican Republic. |
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