Retail waste of horticultural products in Sweden

Waste of food is a topic of considerable policy interest. However, few studies have been done on food waste at the retail level. The aim of this study was to examine how large retail waste is for 16 different horticultural products, selected among typical fruit and vegetables. The levels of retail waste were examined in cooperation with one of the leading Swedish retail companies. The results showed that retail waste of horticultural products amounted between 0.4% and 6.3% of store supplies for different horticultural products. The results did not show that packaging reduced waste of horticultural products. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.