The staff attitudes to food waste in the Finnish food service industry

Abstract

Food waste is a pressing issue in the food service industry in Finland as well as globally. This thesis investigates the influence of Staff attitudes and cultural background and work place conditions on food waste practices. The research was commissioned by the Sustainable Food Services Unit at Xamk to provide usable knowledge to help more sustainable and responsible kitchen operations. Qualitative research methodology was applied and data were gathered using six semi structured interviews with employees who work in various food service environments in Helsinki. The data were analysed by thematic analysis under three broad themes: Staff attitudes and behaviours, cultural and background differences and operational challenges. The results have good connections with the Theory of Planned Behaviour and the Food Waste Hierarchy and Corporate Social Responsibility. The findings show that overall restaurant Staff have positive attitudes about reducing waste. Restaurant Staff take decisions in their daily tasks such as to adjust portions, checking stock and safe re-using of ingredients etc. The study underlines the role of restaurant Staff attitudes and behaviours in determining the effect of food waste for instance, when Staff believe in the importance of reducing waste, they will be more likely to be responsible and to influence others within the workplace. These results indicate that strengthening positive attitudes and ensuring supportive work environment that promotes mindful behaviour of the restaurant Staff can make a meaningful contribution to decrease food waste in food service settings in Finland.