This deck was part of a Sustainable Brands webinar. View the recording of this webinar at SustainableBrands.com/library The average U.S. family trashes $1,500 worth of edible food each year while one in six Americans struggle with food insecurity. How might we change our culture of waste? What is the role for retailers and food manufacturers? Based on a recent study about the values, drivers and food waste rituals of Aspirational consumers, BBMG founding partner Mitch Baranowski reveals why the future of food waste revolves around shifting the narrative and disrupting the consumer journey. Join this provocative discussion and leave with a clear sense of the many design opportunities in front of us. What You Will Learn: --Gain insight into the values and issues that matter most for this growing segment --Explore Aspirational consumers’ food waste rituals and routines --Discover new territories for advancing your brand strategy --Gain insights into driving consumer engagement --Learn about best practices, emerging trends and expert opinions

1. Waste Not, Want Not
Aspirationals and the Future of Food Waste
Prepared Exclusively for Sustainable Brands 11.19.14

2. Part 1.
Introduction
2

3. Hi, it’s great
to meet you.
@whichmitch
@ItsBBMG
#aspirationals
#foodwaste

4. Why #foodwaste? Why now?

5. 40%

6. The Largest Source

7. $1,500

8. 1 in 6

9. food loss vs. food waste

10. “First, we have to stop using the
word waste—because who wants
a second helping of food waste?”
– Doug Rauch, Founder, Daily Table
Former President, Trader Joe’s
10

12. Weird is a good start.
How do we disrupt and delight
the consumer experience?

13. 13
Part 2.
The Aspirationals

14. Meet the Aspirationals: Global Context
+ 2 billion
worldwide
+ 33%
are Millennials
+ 34%
of U.S. population

15. A New Segmentation Model
Social and Environmental Values
Materialism
BBMG + GlobeScan 2014

16. Why Aspirationals:
Rethinking Consumption
LOVE TO
SHOP
CONSUME
LESS
HAPPINESS
BEYOND
STUFF
+ +

17. 17
Where are Aspirationals on
food waste?
Funny you should ask.

18. 18
Part 3.
What? Me waste?

19. What We Did
Deep Dive
• 122 household decision-makers
• 30-question survey probing
buying behaviors, purchase
drivers and brand affinities
• Two-part journal study and
home audit exploring food
waste behaviors and
challenges

20. Key Demographics
122 Household Decision Makers
20

21. Active Shoppers
Value+Values
21

22. Top Concerns
most concerned about
wasting money 70%
6
4
7
18
61
70
Money loss
Waste concerns
Quality of food
Energy
Food donation
I don't think about it

23. Expired!
56% food past the expiry date
8
20
16
41
15
Always
Sometimes
On occasion
Rarely
Never
sometimes or always eat

24. How Oen They Toss
throw out food once
a month 39%
1
3
33
25
39
Once a month
Twice a week
Once a week
Twice a week
Every day

25. Why They Toss
Top Reasons
Spoiled food
Bad smell
Past expiry date
Bad quality
Taste
Lack of storage/
containers

26. How They Try
31% get creative with
11
1
11
18
31
29
We get creative with le!overs
We buy less
We compost
We cook smaller portions
We donate
Other (ie freeze and preserve)
le!overs to reduce
food waste at home

27. Food Waste Diaries
27

28. 28
We asked a dozen
consumers to chronicle
their food waste experience.

29. 29
Let’s meet three of them.

30. Meet Three
Sarah Alyssa Benjamin
Composts daily.
“I scoured through my fridge
and found some forgo"en
items from recent picnics—
things I set aside for the kids
to finish but they never did.”
Creative with what’s on hand.
“This is 24 hours worth of
food waste plus cleaning my
fridge out. Most of that is
vegetables that were bad and
kombucha that spoiled.“
Creativity and courage.
“We freeze meats and
breads, thawing what we
will eat the next day. We
eat all our fruits—any
le!overs we juice them.”

31. 31
Five key drivers.

32. Pragmatism
Altruism
Ease
Courage
Creativity
“I’m really sad if I have to throw
away food I have paid for.”
“I’m really sad when I throw out
food. I know it could have
nourished someone.”
“I don’t have a composter! I wish I
could compost!”
“My husband is usually brave
enough to eat expired food so it
doesn’t go to waste.”
“I can’t stand wasting food or the
money I spent. I will happily
change my meal plans to ensure
produce and le!overs get eaten.”
What Drives Them
Core Values

33. 33
Five key challenges.

34. Overbuying &
Poor Planning
Poor Storage &
Organization
What Stops Them
Confusing “Best By” Dates
No Time to Shop
Leaving the Le!overs
“Cooking for only two people
means sometimes I make too
much food or buy too much.”
“A big challenge is remembering
to eat what we have before we
start on something else.”
“I can’t drink milk two days a!er
the expiration date so we usually
throw it out.”
“I would like to buy fresher food,
but I don’t want to go to the store
more o!en.”
“Le!overs aren’t always popular
with my kids, so I worry that we
are wasting food.”
Core Barriers

35. 35
Part 4.
How We Win

36. 36
We win two ways.

37. 37
First, we must
change the narrative.

40. The New Narrative
40
Today Tomorrow
Hero, Sage Explorer, Creator
Didacticism, Altruism Discovery, Creativity
Stop! Don’t waste food. Do
the right thing.
Start! Love food. Do the
smart thing.
Ro!en food, bins, heaps,
starving children
New recipes, tools,
community of food lovers
Guilt for wasting Perks for sharing

41. 41
Second, we must
enhance the journey.

42. Enhancing the Journey
It starts with planning.
“Is this still good? Oh, I forgot I had that.
Ugh, so wasteful.”
• Help consumers recognize when and why things go bad
• Make it easy to donate or share edible food
• Smarter planning based on order history, life stage, season or occasion
• Gamify the shopping list experience
• Incentivize cleaning the fridge/cycling items from back to front

43. Enhancing the Journey
It moves on to shopping.
“So crowded. Doh! I forgot my bags. Why do they put
milk in the back?”
• Clarify “best by” labeling
• Use the store to provide tips, demos and support
• Communicate how long certain things keep (via info displays, shelf talkers, etc.)
• Reward frequency of visits, not quantity purchased
• Recommend recipes based on actual purchases

44. Enhancing the Journey
Then the unpacking fun begins.
“Did I get everything? What goes where? How does
this compare to my last trip?”
• Improve packing at checkout to optimize unpacking at home
• Help customers identify what to eat first
• Help them store things properly
• Partner with affinity brands (appliance makers, storage experts) to
incentivize more consistent storage
• Use order history to offer comparative analysis insights

45. Enhancing the Journey
On to prepping, cooking, serving, savoring.
“I love/hate to cook. I’ve never made this before. Did
I get enough for four? Where’s that eggplant?”
• Inspire with recipes from friends, family members, fellow shoppers, store
employees
• Reward sharing tips and recipes
• Highlight backstories of food items (spices, cheeses, produce, etc.)
• Share how to enjoy food and drink the most (taste, touch, smell, sight)
• Partner with affinity brands (e.g., cookware) to promote savoring food
• Partner with celebrity chefs and related media outlets

46. Enhancing the Journey
Trash, compost, store, start all over again.
“So many leovers!? What to do with all this food. I
wish we had more room in the freezer.”
• Make it easy to donate or share edible food
• Tie “using up” all items on your list or in fridge to perks and privileges
• Suggest recipes for le$overs
• Rebrand “le$overs”
• Incentivize storage and composting, bringing in affinity brands as needed

48. 48
Part 5.
In Conclusion...

49. 49
The future of food waste
will be defined by
disrupting the experience
and delighting the customer.

50. Today:
Stop Wasting
Tomorrow:
Start Savoring

51. Today:
Fragmented
Ecosystem
Tomorrow:
Integrated
Ecosystem

52. Tomorrow:
Robust
Recommendations
Today:
Poor
Data Science

53. Today:
Few Perks
Tomorrow:
Lots of Rewards

54. Today:
Siloed Customers
Tomorrow:
Values-driven
Community

55. 55
If you would like to receive
a copy of the full report,
please email:
Aria McLauchlan
Client Partnerships Manager
amclauchlan@bbmg.com

56. Discussion
56