In 2015, the USDA/EPA set a goal of reducing food waste in 50% by 2030. This goal will not only lower U.S. methane gas emissions but also redirect food to millions of food insecure Americans. Little is known on food waste and its association with diet quality. Therefore, our objective was to explore the associations between diet quality and food waste.
Methods
This was a cross sectional study among adults ³18 years in south Florida who are the primary household food provider conducting a primary shopping event for the week. Participants were recruited outside of local grocery stores and asked to fill out a quick food waste survey. Pictures of the participants’ grocery receipts were taken to analyze diet quality using the Grocery Purchase Quality Index 2016 (GPQI-2016). The GPQI-2016 is based on the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)– 2010 and has 11 different components (each with a maximum score of 5 or 10) for a total score of 75. Correlations were used to determine the associations between diet quality and amount of food waste (Pearson) or reasons for food waste (Point-biserial).
Results
A total of 109 participants were recruited but 103 had complete data. Mean age was 44.6 ± 13.6 years, most were females (74%) and Hispanics (79%). Most usually grocery shop in a main event and then go back for smaller items (44%) once (36%) or twice (28%) a week. Mean diet quality score was 40.9 ± 9.64 out of 75 points and mean amount of food waste was 17.7 ± 19.9 handfuls. Most reported throwing away food mainly because it went bad (90%) or it was past it's due date (80%). Handfuls of bread/rice waste were significantly inversely correlated with diet quality (r = −2.60; p = 0.013). Also, we found a significant inverse correlation between diet quality and food thrown away because it had gone past it's use by date (r = −.196; p = 0.049).
Conclusions
A lower diet quality score was related to higher amount of bread/rice wasted and with throwing away foods that has past it's use date. These results could justify directing reducing food waste efforts in the community by educating individuals on purchasing frozen products or on proper storage to prolong shelf life, as well as on understanding the different dates placed on products by manufacturers.
Funding Sources
Internal funds from Florida International University.
