Volume 32 (2021): Issue 3 (September 2021)

The objective of the article is to present the concept of practical consumer ethics, which may constitute the axiological basis of sustainable consumption and such an attitude of the consumer that will prevent the negative impact of food consumption on the natural and social environment and will counteract the food waste. The authors consider ethical consumption against the background of the normative pattern of sustainable consumption, which is the practical operationalisation of the concept of sustainable development. This pattern implies, on the one hand, consumer ethics and, on the other hand, an environmentally and socially responsible lifestyle. Against this background, the authors postulate the concept of frugalism as a practical ethics of consumption, based on aretological assumptions and the values of Henryk Skolimowski's ecological ethics. Frugalism, in its normative assumptions, contributes to deconsumption by changing the system of values, attitudes and preferences of a consumer, who voluntarily decides to limit the amount of purchased products, preferring those that are recycled and more sustainable. The authors present comparative statements of the features of the consumerist and frugalistic attitudes.

Food waste is a worldwide phenomenon that needs to be reduced. The causes of this problem vary widely. The study used the Computer-Assisted Web Interview method. There were 500 respondents from all over the country and among them 60% women and 40% men. The sample selection was purposeful. Before the pandemic began, the highest percentage of consumers shopped two to three times a week. As of March 2020, the frequency of this activity has decreased for every fourth respondent. Also during this period, an increase in the frequency of shopping alone was observed, as well as an increase in the number of people who outsource their shopping list to others. Nowadays, the vast majority of respondents usually create a shopping list before doing it and follow it. Before the pandemic, this was the case for only 46% of respondents, while during the pandemic it was the case for 81%. Exceeding the expiration date was the most common reason for throwing products in the trash before as well as during the pandemic. Over-shopping as a cause of food waste increased almost fourfold during the pandemic. A positive aspect is noticeable for the ‘I don’t throw food away’ response. The percentage of respondents increased from 16% to 21%. During both survey periods, respondents most often indicated that they throw away fruits, vegetables, bread, and dairy products. During the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers’ shopping behaviour changed. They attended grocery stores far less frequently, mostly on their own, and purchased larger quantities of products. Nonetheless, consumers planned their purchases and checked expiration dates before putting food in their shopping carts. Households were thus forced to respond quickly, adjusting their shopping behaviour. These behaviours have implications for the subsequent activities of retail merchants.

The urgent challenge of reaching sustainable development goals (including those pertaining to the limitation of food losses and waste) raises social awareness in this area. At the same time, a need arose to conduct studies focusing on the creation of a system of gathering and reporting data on food wastage and procedures helping to reduce its scale. The article presents and discusses the benefits and drawbacks of selected methods of data collection used for estimating of food losses in processing sectors, based on a case of the bakery and confectionery industry (the mass balance method, quantitative studies – questionnaire/survey methods, qualitative research – in-depth interviews, direct measurement). Attention was paid to the importance of methodological, technical, organisational and legal aspects. The starting points were the methods for certain links in the food chain identified in EU legal documents of 2019. Bakery and confectionery businesses make up around 40% of the number of entities operating in the agri-food sector in Poland, holding an important place in the food economy. The sector's losses are around 2.5% of the mass of the manufactured products, with the highest losses attributable to production departments in bakeries. The complexity of manufacturing processes of a wide range of bakery and confectionery products raises numerous problems with regard to measuring losses, especially in the methodological, technical, organisational and legal aspects. The mass balance method should be considered the most recommended for measuring losses in the bakery and confectionery sector. Collected knowledge can be used on a practical level, to create reporting systems about food losses in our country for selected food sectors. Such actions will allow meeting the reporting requirements of the European Commission (EC) and to monitor process of food loss reduction.

Food waste is a global problem with 5% of the European Union's (EU's) retail sector responsible. The reasons cited for food waste at retail level among others: undesirable customer behaviour, inadequate packaging, irregular demand, overestimated deliveries, small store area and warehouse space, inappropriate replenishment policies in shops and increased product quality requirements. The requirement to keep shelves full in stores and inappropriate storage logistics lead to overstocking of products, the arrangement of which disregards the first in-first out (FIFO) principle. It contributes to the amplification of food take-offs and may lead to the occurrence of products with exceeded use-by dates, which is the most common cause of food wastage [Federacja Polskich Banków Żywności 2020]. The aim of the study was to evaluate the functioning of the FIFO system in specialist stores, discount stores and large-format stores that have organic food on offer. To evaluate the FIFO system, unannounced inspections were conducted in the stores. During the inspections, errors in the arrangement of products according to the FIFO system were detected. The items found to be out of order were both long and short-dated products, stored in refrigerated as well as on regular shelves, indicating that stores have a problem with storage logistics in all departments. Improving solutions and implementing appropriate measures in this area could reduce food wastage at the retail level.