Efforts to Reduce Student Food Waste in Campus Dining Areas

Abstract

Recent environmental and social justice movements have emphasized the importance of reducing food waste, due to the energy required to produce and transport food, as well as the millions of individuals living in food-deprived conditions. In the United States, food is the number one material taking up landfill space, producing methane gas-one of the most harmful atmospheric pollutants. The current study focused on the primary cafeteria on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. This location was chosen because it is a buffet-style (all-you-can-eat) dining option, with students experiencing no averse (i.e. money loss) contingencies for taking more food than they can feasibly consume.