How marketing classes can rescue ‘ugly produce’ from becoming food waste

This article was originally published on The Conversation.

Indeed, some estimates suggest that approximately 40% of fruits and vegetables never even leave farms. Much of it gets rejected by wholesalers and retailers based on irregularities in weight, size or shape.

This desire for cosmetically appealing food also extends to consumers, as we often prefer picture-perfect produce. Unsurprisingly, this wanton waste takes a significant environmental toll, with an estimated 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions tied to unconsumed food.

Showing ugly produce some love

Some companies have taken strides to counter food waste. A prominent example in the United States is Misfits Market, which launched in 2018.

By buying misshapen and ugly produce and reselling it at discount prices in subscription boxes, Misfits Market has grown into a billion-dollar business.

Closer to home, Loblaw Companies' "naturally imperfect" line offers visually unappealing produce at lower prices, while newcomers such as Montréal-based Food Hero are developing apps to reduce a different but persistent form of waste by helping customers find deals on food approaching its best-by date.

Despite such encouraging efforts, there's still a lot of work to do on changing attitudes and behaviors to alleviate waste. This has become an important academic issue, and is increasingly being tackled by those of us in marketing, a field that has perpetuated this cycle of waste.

In a recent study, we introduced our RESCUER framework designed to expose students to food waste and to generate behavioral changes. We developed it over three years through research assignments undertaken by students in our classes at Carleton University. We used 90 reflective essay assignments alongside 63 sets of surveys (administered pre- and post-assignment) to develop the framework.

Steps towards change

RESCUER stands for the steps in the process of learning, action and change undertaken by students, and combines passive and active modes of learning.

We first engaged students with resources — "passive" forms of learning through lectures and curated readings on food waste, irregularly shaped produce and sustainable practices.

Next, students engaged in an experiential learning exercise that had them actively planning, shopping for and preparing a salad with food waste issues in mind, before writing reflective journals about their experiences. Journaling allows students to articulate their feelings, thoughts and values, leads them to examine and challenge pre-conceived assumptions, practices and policies, and encourages them to be more alert when shopping for and preparing food.

We next accounted for the social influences of family, friends and peers on sustainability-minded behaviours.

Throughout the process, students developed a greater cognizance of food waste, and these issues became more readily and consistently resonant when shopping. The process also resulted in underlying problem-salience — the spontaneous evocation of the food waste problem in consumers' minds as soon as they need to buy or prepare food.

Finally, we identified factors that expedite learning and adoption processes, such as the availability of recycling and composting facilities at home and access to retailers that support sustainable practices and provide price discounts.