From markets to clicks: The impact of purchasing channel migration on household food waste

Abstract

With the rapid development of digital technology, consumers are increasingly shifting their food purchasing channels from offline physical stores to online platforms. However, the impact of this transition on household food waste has not been fully explored. This study investigates the effect of different purchasing channels on household food waste and identifies the primary sources of waste, based on household vegetable consumption data in China. The results indicate that purchasing food through online channels increases household food waste by 12.967 g in amount and 0.017 in proportion compared to offline channels. The proportion and amount of waste from leafy and root vegetables purchased online are significantly higher than those bought offline, while no significant difference is observed for fruit vegetables. The online purchasing channel primarily increases the probability of households experiencing food waste (0.121), meaning more households are prone to waste when purchasing online. However, there is no significant difference in the amount or proportion of waste between online and offline channels for households that generate waste. In terms of waste sources, the increased waste associated with online shopping is mainly linked to higher risks of food being wasted due to expiration (0.125) and improper storage (0.072). These findings offer valuable insights for developing “anti-food waste” strategies in the digital era.