A Review of Household Food Waste Generation during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic may have impacted the quantity and composition of household food waste generation in parallel with recent changes to food behaviors. A literature review was undertaken to determine the state of household food wasting during pandemic circumstances. Forty-one articles that reported on household food waste generation during COVID-19 were identified. Most of these studies relied on self-reported recall of food wasting behavior (n = 35), primarily collected through surveys. The average total amount of household food waste generated during COVID-19 was 0.91 kg per capita per week. Average avoidable food waste generation was 0.40 kg per capita per week and average unavoidable food waste generation was 0.51 kg per capita per week. Fruit and vegetables were the most wasted types of food. Only five studies reported statistically significant changes (actual or perceived) to household food waste generation during COVID-19. These results indicate a possible decrease in total, perceived food waste generation during pandemic circumstances, with a possible increase in the actual generation of unavoidable food waste. Further research is needed to adequately determine the impact of the pandemic on household food waste generation, as the findings summarized in this review vary substantially and statistically significant results are limited.