Almost half of Italian consumers (47%) are a Rambo in the kitchen. It may sound threatening, but in reality it is good news: according to an Adiconsum survey carried out together with Applia Italia (the association that brings together household appliance manufacturers), the “Rambos” are in fact attentive, organized and unwilling consumers distract from greedy foods (but not included in the shopping list) on display on the shelves. Habitual but open to online shopping, especially attentive to waste.
Do I throw it or not? However, there is still a lot to work on in the fight against waste. Because today we still waste about 65 kilos of food per person per year but also because, as emerged from the survey conducted on almost 500 people, there is a lack of awareness of how to reduce waste in practice. For example, 80% of respondents say they are aware that dissipating food has consequences for the environment (in terms of waste, carbon dioxide emissions, unnecessary consumption of water, energy and soil), yet 71% of these have difficulty knowing if a food is still good or should be thrown in the trash. A fact that should worry, given that, as a precaution, in most cases where there is a doubt, it is thrown away. And during the Christmas holidays, with so much food available, the risk is always around the corner.
The survey found that almost one in three times, the decision whether or not to trash a food depends on a simple presumption of spoilage. In short, we blindly rely on the words “preferably consume by” and lack the knowledge to judge the state of conservation, thus ending up wasting uselessly.
To continue with the cinematic metaphors, Adiconsum places 29% of the interviewees in the “Roman Holiday” category: a type of hedonistic consumer, who loves taking a tour of the supermarket and lets himself be tempted by always new foods and packaging, loves quality food and often invites friends for dinner. The downside is that it wastes a lot because it buys more than necessary and, often, without checking what is in the pantry first. A consumer, explains Adiconsum, “who must be taken by the hand and accompanied to find the right balance between consumerism and critical consumption, learning the pleasure of making responsible choices towards society and valid for his wallet”.
A stranger in the kitchen. The investigation also focused on the use of the refrigerator, one of the most important tools for storing food. However, we know very little about this instrument: 72.9% of respondents have no idea how to check the exact temperature of their refrigerator. And often there is no way, because above all the older models do not have a thermometer that can be consulted quickly. This is a fundamental fact: keeping an eye on how many degrees there are in the fridge helps to understand if we have filled it too much, opened it too often or loaded with hot food. This can affect both the operation of the appliance but also the energy needed to cool them, with higher electricity bills. A fridge that displays the temperature is very common today, but there are other functions – futuristic, not too distant in time – that attract consumers a lot. The one preferred by the panel interviewed by Adiconsum is the detection of the expiry date, with alert for food that is close to the date indicated on the label. The touch screen is also very popular to consult the content without having to open the door each time; followed by “shopping support”, to prepare your shopping list or get advice on recipes so as not to waste leftovers.
The last two categories identified by the survey are “Predator” and “Zombie”. The Predator, represented by 18% of the sample, is a savings animal: it compares offers, both on the flyer and on the app, and runs from one point of sale to another to buy what they need at the best price on the square. “He is the most promising in terms of awareness,” the report writes, because he is a consumer who does not waste much. There are few – fortunately only 5.5% – Zombies, inattentive consumers, little attentive to labels and even less to the differences between one product and another. But above all, they are wasteful because they are disillusioned, given up, convinced that their choices have no impact. A type of consumer who can only be recovered with clear labels and effective information campaigns.
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