Experiential learning as a strategy for reducing household food waste among young Greeks

Abstract Background: Food waste is a contemporary challenge with impacts on the environment, economy, and society. Every year 1/3 of the food produced is wasted, where the households are responsible for 53% of the total food waste. In Greece, 87 kg of household food waste are produced per inhabitant/year. Youth are among the high food waste producers. Objective: The purpose was to investigate whether experiential learning stimulated pro- environmental behaviour for household food waste prevention among young people (aged 18-21 years) in Greece. Methods: This qualitative study was divided into four-phases; a minor questionnaire, two focus groups and an intervention. The focus groups approach was based on the consumption characteristics of Greek consumers. Experiential learning was used as the intervention method to develop food waste prevention skills. Results: The participants were interested in gaining practical knowledge and cooking skills for food waste prevention as they found it is an important issue. They had theoretical knowledge and understanding on food waste prevention which was gained through family practices, awareness campaigns, and on the Internet. However, they lacked practical knowledge. The participants through focus group discussions reshaped their thought process on food waste prevention. The experiential learning intervention provided useful skills and practical knowledge, that will help them reach the target of food waste prevention.