Buy It Now or Let It Perish Into Sustainability Holons—The Ghost in Retailers' Food Waste Machines: Sustainable Development Perspectives

Abstract

This study examines the consumer response to (1) pricing and discounts, (2) packaging design, and (3) sustainability-enhancing technology and apps on special offers before the maximum shelf life expires. A survey of 303 consumers currently living in Germany supports the relevance of these factors. Consumer attitudes toward sustainability moderate the relationship of pricing and discounts as well as that of technology and apps to consumer responses. Most notably, by consolidating identifying factors influencing food waste at the retail level and the influence of consumer behavior and attitudes toward sustainability into a holon flux, we introduce the concept of sustainability holons embedded in the context of feedback loops and food waste, taking the sustainable development perspectives. The study's exploration of holons and holon flux highlights the need for future research to focus on varying levels of granularity in divergent industries, which could enhance the precision and applicability of sustainability holons in diverse cultural and business contexts and strengthen stakeholder engagement.