Observatory waste watcher - Italy

Food waste is recognized as one of the most important global manifestations of the inefficiencies of the food chain and a fundamental role is played by the consumer. In Italy, the Observatory Waste Watcher Italy (OWW-IT), which has been investigating the issue since 2013, estimated that in 2022, approximately 30 kg of food waste per inhabitant was generated only at the household level, making a total of almost 1,8 million tons across all the country.

These data and the literature suggest that consumers have the responsibility for producing a higher proportion of food waste. In Italy, household food waste contributes between 40 and 50% of whole food waste. As a result, growing attention has been dedicated to the consumption stage, which has been recognized as an essential behavioral issue where multiple interrelated and competing drivers play an influential role.

Recently also dietary choices have been studied as possible drivers of household food waste. Recent research has focused on the link between diets in terms of nutrients intake and pro-environmental behaviors indirectly addressing the association with food waste. 

During the three years of the project, the OWW-IT will carry out annual surveys, based on opinions, self-perceptions, and declarations on representative samples of the Italian population, aimed at investigating social, behavioral, and lifestyles dynamics behind household food waste and the food styles of italian families.

Particular attention will be pointed to food waste behavioral drivers including personal preferences and cultural issues, spending and consumption habits, but also to attitudes and social norms.

Moreover will be explored the relationships between dietary patterns, their drivers of choice, and food waste.

Surveys will be integrated with other research tools and methods to assess not only individual behaviors, but also private strategies and public interventions to prevent e reduce food waste. This will allow to identify the possible best practices to prevent and reduce food waste, both at individual (individual virtuous behavior) and at the public level (which interventions are most effective and why).

The OWW-IT seeks to provide the community with knowledge and tools for investigating both the social, behavioral, and lifestyles dynamics behind household food waste , and for investigating and understanding the effectiveness of both public and private measures to prevent and reduce food waste. The Observatory aims to generate common and shared knowledge, to guide individual actions, private strategies, and public policies for food waste prevention and reduction, and improve food resources use efficiency. 

Overall the OWW-IT will: 1) gather general data and a better understanding on household food waste in Italy; 2) identify best practices both at individual (what I can do as an individual to reduce food waste) and public level (which interventions are more effective and why) in Italy; 3) develop a solid Country reviews on on household food waste; 4) contribute to measure the Italian advancements towards Sustainable Development Goals (12.3 in particular); 5) improve the resilience of Italian food systems by identifying strategies to improve food system sustainability.