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Citizens’ Food Habit Behavior and Food Waste Consequences during the First COVID-19 Lockdown in Spain

Author

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  • Berta Vidal-Mones

    (Center for Agro-Food Economy and Development (CREDA-UPC-IRTA), Castelldefels, 08860 Barcelona, Spain)

  • Héctor Barco

    (Enraíza Derechos, 20012 San Sebastian, Spain)

  • Raquel Diaz-Ruiz

    (Fundación Espigoladors, 08810 Barcelona, Spain)

  • Maria-Angeles Fernandez-Zamudio

    (Centro para el Desarrollo de la Agricultura Sostenible, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias, Moncada, 46113 Valencia, Spain)

Abstract

During the first COVID-19 wave in Spain, confining the population at home was seen as an effective way to prevent the disease from spreading. This limited mobility affected citizens’ routines at homes because it influenced their life habits, including food management. The main objective of this paper was to understand citizens’ food waste (FW) behavior during the first COVID-19 lockdown in Spain by understanding related food practices that could have influenced FW generation. An online survey was conducted from 14 May to 11 June, 2020; 6293 valid responses were collected and analyzed, and 95% of the participants declared not wasting more food than usual. On average, they reported wasting 234 g per household per week, which equals 88 g per capita. We found significant differences in the reported FW generation between participants regarding their age, gender, household composition, and employment status due to COVID-19. In addition, food-related behaviors such as buying more food than usual due to fear or anxiety, storing more food than before the lockdown, and improvising when buying groceries seemed to affect the FW reported by the participants. The paper ends by comparing the conclusions drawn by different works conducted in other countries for a similar purpose.

Suggested Citation

  • Berta Vidal-Mones & Héctor Barco & Raquel Diaz-Ruiz & Maria-Angeles Fernandez-Zamudio, 2021. "Citizens’ Food Habit Behavior and Food Waste Consequences during the First COVID-19 Lockdown in Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-20, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:6:p:3381-:d:519986
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    4. Bright Obuobi & Hong Wang & Faustina Awuah & Emmanuel Nketiah & Gibbson Adu-Gyamfi & Mavis Adjei, 2024. "The aftermath of COVID-19 impacts: examining the impact of COVID-19 on residents' current food waste behavior," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(10), pages 25503-25526, October.
    5. Claudia Giordano & Silvio Franco, 2021. "Household Food Waste from an International Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-9, May.
    6. Emma L. Sharp & Jillian Haszard & Victoria Egli & Rajshri Roy & Lisa Te Morenga & Lauranna Teunissen & Paulien Decorte & Isabelle Cuykx & Charlotte De Backer & Sarah Gerritsen, 2021. "Less Food Wasted? Changes to New Zealanders’ Household Food Waste and Related Behaviours Due to the 2020 COVID-19 Lockdown," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-17, September.
    7. Anna Sylwia Tarczyńska & Ewa Malinowska & Andrzej Urbanowicz, 2023. "Attitudes and Behaviours of Young Consumers towards Wasting Food: Case Study Based on Polish Students," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-18, February.
    8. Tang, Decai & Obuobi, Bright & Nketiah, Emmanuel & Adu-Gyamfi, Gibbson, 2025. "Breaking the energy crisis: Does the role of government support impact Ghanaians' intention to adopt sustainable energy from food waste?," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 320(C).
    9. Giulia Borghesi & Piergiuseppe Morone, 2023. "A review of the effects of COVID-19 on food waste," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(1), pages 261-280, February.
    10. Andrea Maugeri & Martina Barchitta & Vanessa Perticone & Antonella Agodi, 2023. "How COVID-19 Pandemic Has Influenced Public Interest in Foods: A Google Trends Analysis of Italian Data," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-12, January.
    11. Mirza Marvel Cequea & Jessika Milagros Vásquez Neyra & Valentina Gomes Haensel Schmitt & Marcos Ferasso, 2021. "Household Food Consumption and Wastage during the COVID-19 Pandemic Outbreak: A Comparison between Peru and Brazil," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-22, July.

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