Standardising takeaway-doggie bags to save uneaten restaurant food-waste

What unsustainable behavior needs to change:

Ever found yourself leaving food on your plate when dining out with friends? Surprisingly, this seemingly innocent action plays a big part in climate change. Each year, a staggering 1.3 billion tons of food goes to waste globally, accounting for a third of all food produced. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) reports that food waste contributes to an equivalent of 8% of all human-produced carbon dioxide emission equivalent to 8% of all human-produced emissions. Interestingly, 12% of this waste comes from restaurant leftovers, much of which could still be eaten if stored properly.

Asking to take the rest of your meal “to-go” in a ‘doggie’ or ‘foodie bag’, is quite commonplace in the US. Conversely, doing so in Europe, particularly Italy, is rare and frankly clashes with a well-established „food culture“ that prioritises fresh, beautifully presented meals.

The Green Nudge:

To address that issue, the Italian research group Nudge Italia in collaboration with the behavioural agency “aBetterPlace” designed a Green Nudge to encourage consumers to ask for foodie bags at the restaurant, i.e. boxes that allow excess food to be taken home.

The intervention involved modifying the Default Option for restaurant leftovers. At each table, a token with both a green and red face was provided. Initially set to the green face by default, this indicated to the waiter that the diner requested to take any leftovers home. By establishing that all uneaten food be automatically taken home in a doggie bag; this action becomes effortless for consumers. This Green Nudge addresses social pressures and ultimately encourages the formation of a new habit.

The result: The intervention conducted in Italy and Switzerland led to a significant increase in the use of foodie bags. Pre-intervention, only 40% of restaurant-goers took their leftovers home, while post-intervention, this rate increased to 80%.