TITLE:
Purchasing Patterns and Consumer Level Waste of Fruits and Vegetables in Urban and Peri-Urban Centers in the Philippines
AUTHORS:
Elda B. Esguerra, Dormita R. del Carmen, Rosa S. Rolle
KEYWORDS:
Fruit and Vegetable Waste, Supermarket, Wet Market
JOURNAL NAME:
Food and Nutrition Sciences,
Vol.8 No.10,
October
27,
2017
ABSTRACT: Fruits and vegetables are inherently perishable hence they are considered as
one of the most wasted categories of food. While several studies have been
conducted to assess consumer level waste of fruits and vegetables, few have
been conducted in developing countries like the Philippines. A survey, using a
pre-tested questionnaire, and involving 500 respondents, was conducted in
selected urban and peri-urban areas in the Philippines, to ascertain consumer
level fruit and vegetable waste. The quantities of fruits and vegetables wasted
by supermarket shoppers and those who purchased fruits in wet markets were
comparably low at 3% - 4%. This low level of consumer fruit and vegetable
waste was attributed to the small quantities (250 to 500 grams per purchase)
purchased by consumers in both categories of markets. Consumer level fruit
and vegetable waste, showed a positive correlation to household size. The level
of fruit waste was positively related to household income, and negatively related
to shopper’s age. Consumers who shopped in supermarkets, purchased
larger quantities of fruit when compared to those who shopped in wet markets.
Wet market shoppers on the other hand, purchased large quantities of
vegetables. Decay, and quality loss manifested by shriveling, wilting, toughening,
browning and softening were the main characteristics of fruits and
vegetables discarded by consumers. The underlying causes of this waste, cited
by respondents included “forgot to eat”, “poor quality”, “forgot to cook” and
“overbuying”. Consumer efforts to minimize waste include buying enough for
consumption, consuming or using immediately after purchase, planning their
menus, improving storage and purchasing produce that is of good quality.