Capabilities, opportunities and motivations that drive food waste disposal practices: a case study of young adults in England

Data in England suggests that food waste is still being disposed into the black bin, also known as residual waste, despite continuous efforts to promote separate food waste collection and food waste reduction practices. Furthermore, it has been anecdotally reported that 18 to 30-year-olds have the highest propensity to generate large amounts of food waste and thus need to be urgently engaged in communication that helps them change their behaviour. This study aims to explore young adults' capabilities (C), opportunities (O), and motivations (M) that may lead to a certain behaviour (B) towards food waste disposal practices (FWDP) grounded on the Behaviour Change Wheel, also called the COM-B model, and could reveal barriers to action. In doing so, a case study approach is used via Harrow Council residents in England within the age group of 18–30 years old. The study took place amid the national lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic and targeted young residents within the 18–30 age group using a structured interview approach with a diagnostic questionnaire promoted through Harrow Council's social media account, followed by in-depth interviews with eligible participants. Out of the 30 residents who completed the diagnostic questionnaire, 35% reported no FWDP, 42% partial FWDP (i.e., some incorrect items in the black bin waste), and 23% reported engaging in FWDP. The first two groups only were invited to the online interviews. The interview results are organised using the COM-B model and reveal that: 1) due to Covid-19 there was a shift to home cooking and increased food waste generation (B); 2) there is a lack of FWDP knowledge, information on benefits, and advice on alleviating pests/health concerns from councils, whereas FWDP differences between councils and reliance on ‘common sense’ often create confusion around FWDP (C); 3) the council may not always provide a caddy or a drop-off/collection service, whereas economic (caddy liners purchase) and logistic concerns (e.g., the lack of a regular collection schedule, unfavourable features of the caddy, and lack of prompts/reminders) resulted to limited uptake of FWDP as the norm (O); 4) the benefits of FWDP do not outweigh costs, while feelings of disgust and a sense of inconvenience lead to lack of or partial FWDP (M). To our knowledge, this is the first study using the COM-B model within the context of FWDP and with a specific focus on young adults in England. Novel theoretical and practical insights are discussed, along with limitations and future research directions.