THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF FOOD WASTE

Abstract

TRADITIONES, 49/1, 2020, 109–124 In recent years, food waste has become an important issue that attracts attention from scientists, consumers, and activists. According to the World Bank, one third of food produced for human consumption is wasted. In Slovenia, almost 131,800 tons of food waste were generated in 2017, or 64 kg per person on average. This article presents the findings of a study on household food waste in Slovenia and, more specifically, its capital, Ljubljana. The authors studied food waste management using a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches (i.e., a survey and an ethnographic study). These approaches were combined in order to obtain a broader picture of waste management and explain how, when, and why people “transform” food into waste.