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Waste of organic and conventional meat and dairy products—A case study from Swedish retail

Author

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  • Eriksson, Mattias
  • Strid, Ingrid
  • Hansson, Per-Anders

Abstract

Many retailers take initiatives to reduce food waste, which can lead to enhanced sustainability, including reduced environmental impacts and cost savings. Another common environmental strategy in retail management is to increase the range of organic products. This study examined if organic food products have a higher level of waste, which thereby risk to counteract the environmental ambitions behind offering these products. The study also examined to what degree differences in waste level could be explained by turnover, shelf-life and wholesale pack size. In the study, six Swedish supermarkets provided data on all articles sold or wasted in the deli, meat, dairy and cheese departments during 2010 and 2011. 24 organic products were compared to their conventional counterparts; 22 of these had higher waste levels (from 1.5 to 29 times higher). Differences in wastage were also compared across departments; in all four departments, organic products as a group had higher waste percentage at all four departments. There was a negative correlation between the total mass sold of a product and the percentage waste. Also, longer shelf-life was associated with decreased waste, but only for products with low turnover. The systematic problem of retail food waste – particularly of organic products and other products with a low turnover – may be mitigated by increasing turnover, by stocking products with longer shelf-life or by decreasing the ordered volume (e.g. through decreased wholesale pack sizes).

Suggested Citation

  • Eriksson, Mattias & Strid, Ingrid & Hansson, Per-Anders, 2014. "Waste of organic and conventional meat and dairy products—A case study from Swedish retail," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 44-52.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:recore:v:83:y:2014:i:c:p:44-52
    DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2013.11.011
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Mette Wier & Katherine O'Doherty Jensen & Laura Morch Andersen & Katrin Millock, 2008. "The Character of Demand in Mature Organic Food Markets: Great Britain and Denmark Compared," PSE-Ecole d'économie de Paris (Postprint) halshs-00343683, HAL.
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    5. Pauline Bergström & Christopher Malefors & Ingrid Strid & Ole Jørgen Hanssen & Mattias Eriksson, 2020. "Sustainability Assessment of Food Redistribution Initiatives in Sweden," Resources, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-27, March.
    6. Emad Alzubi & Ahmed Kassem & Bernd Noche, 2022. "A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment: Polystyrene or Polypropylene Packaging Crates to Reduce Citrus Loss and Waste in Transportation?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-12, October.
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    8. Beullens, Patrick & Ghiami, Yousef, 2022. "Waste reduction in the supply chain of a deteriorating food item – Impact of supply structure on retailer performance," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 300(3), pages 1017-1034.
    9. Cicatiello, Clara & Franco, Silvio & Pancino, Barbara & Blasi, Emanuele & Falasconi, Luca, 2017. "The dark side of retail food waste: Evidences from in-store data," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 273-281.
    10. Scholz, Katharina & Eriksson, Mattias & Strid, Ingrid, 2015. "Carbon footprint of supermarket food waste," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 56-65.
    11. de Souza, Michele & Pereira, Giancarlo Medeiros & Lopes de Sousa Jabbour, Ana Beatriz & Chiappetta Jabbour, Charbel Jose & Trento, Luiz Reni & Borchardt, Miriam & Zvirtes, Leandro, 2021. "A digitally enabled circular economy for mitigating food waste: Understanding innovative marketing strategies in the context of an emerging economy," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    12. Elżbieta Goryńska-Goldmann & Michał Gazdecki & Krystyna Rejman & Sylwia Łaba & Joanna Kobus-Cisowska & Krystian Szczepański, 2021. "Magnitude, Causes and Scope for Reducing Food Losses in the Baking and Confectionery Industry—A Multi-Method Approach," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-20, September.
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