An exploratory study of possible food waste risks in supermarket fruit and vegetable sections

Abstract Food waste is an emerging issue in terms of food policy; the most common cause of fruit and vegetable waste at a retailer, in addition to excess stock and consumer behaviour, is the lack of employees certified in food handling. Fruits and vegetables require specific handling and storing to avoid waste. The objective of this work was to survey the employees of fruit and vegetable sections in supermarkets to understand their experience and the reasons they believe products are wasted. The results show that most employees have secondary educations; the average age of these employees is 33 with at least one year working for the company; and no significant correlation was found between age and seniority in the company. In comparison to international supermarkets, national supermarkets train their employees less. Employees perceived the best-selling fruits to be bananas, apples, papayas, melons and pineapples and the vegetables to be tomatoes, onions, green peppers (serrano), and potatoes, which are essential in Mexican cuisine, and their perceptions of best-selling produce were related to waste, probably due to the widespread availability of these types of produce. One of the strategies to avoid wasting fruits and vegetables in good condition is donating them to food banks.摘要 食物浪费已成为粮食政策领域的新兴议题。在零售商环节，除库存过剩与消费者行为外，果蔬浪费最常见的诱因是缺乏持有食品处理资质的从业人员。果蔬需采用专属的处理与存储方式，方能避免浪费。本研究旨在对超市果蔬区员工开展调研，以了解其从业经历以及他们认为导致商品浪费的原因。调研结果显示，多数员工仅接受过中等教育；该群体的平均年龄为33岁，且均至少在本企业任职满1年；未发现员工年龄与司龄之间存在显著相关性。相较于国际连锁超市，本土超市对员工的培训频次更低。员工认为销量最高的水果依次为香蕉、苹果、木瓜、甜瓜与菠萝，蔬菜则为番茄、洋葱、塞拉诺青辣椒以及土豆——这类食材均为墨西哥料理的核心原料；员工对畅销农产品的认知与浪费情况存在关联，这或许是因为该类农产品的市场供给量普遍较高。将品相完好的果蔬捐赠至食品银行，是减少此类浪费的有效策略之一。