The DOI matches its Crossref record; 47 of the 47 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Food, Waste and Safety: Negotiating Conflicting Social Anxieties into the Practices of Domestic Provisioning
Abstract
Two significant realms of social anxiety, visible in the discourses of media and public policy, potentially pull practices of home food provisioning in conflicting directions. On the one hand, campaigns to reduce the astonishing levels of food waste generated in the UK moralize acts of both food saving (such as keeping and finding creative culinary uses for leftovers) and food disposal. On the other hand, agencies concerned with food safety, including food-poisoning, problematize common practices of thrift, saving and reuse around provisioning. The tensions that arise as these public discourses are negotiated together into domestic practices open up moments in which ‘stuff’ crosses the line from being food to being waste. This paper pursues this through the lens of qualitative and ethnographic data collected as part of a four-year European research programme concerned with consumer anxieties about food. Through focus groups, life-history interviews and observations, data emerged which give critical insights into processes from which food waste results. With a particular focus on how research participants negotiate use-by dates, we argue that interventions to reduce food waste can be enhanced by appreciating how food becomes waste through everyday practices.
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In the citing paper
“in terms of wasting food it has been found to be negative, with consumers feeling bad or guilty about wasting food (Evans, 2012;Watson and Meah, 2012).”
From "The road to food waste is paved with good intentions": When consumers' goals inhibit the minimization of household food waste (2019) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“In addition, Watson and Meah (2012) indicate that none of their respondents explicitly raised the link between greenhouse gas emissions and the production of food.”
From Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications (2018) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“Some consumers also associate food waste with emotions of 'disgust ' (Radzyminska et al., 2016;Waitt and Phillips, 2016;Watson and Meah, 2012), 'hate' (Waitt and Phillips, 2016), 'frustration' or 'annoyance' (Graham-Rowe et al., 2014), and 'anxiety' (Evans, 2011a;Graham-Rowe et al., 2014).”
From Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications (2018) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“Furthermore, wasting food is considered as a waste of the time put into the provision and preparation of food (Neff et al., 2015;Watson and Meah, 2012).”
From Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications (2018) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“Equally, a qualitative study from the UK stresses that the avoidance of food waste was mainly driven by thrift and a responsible and economical use of resources (Watson and Meah, 2012).”
From Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications (2018) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“Moreover, there is ample evidence that people are uncomfortable with wasting food due to the perceived value of food itself (Ganglbauer et al., 2013;Graham-Rowe et al., 2014;Watson and Meah, 2012).”
From Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications (2018) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“Additionally, a perceived lack of time may prevent one from cooking planned meals for which ingredients have already been bought (Ganglbauer et al., 2013;Watson and Meah, 2012).”
From Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications (2018) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“An effective waste prevention strategy is cooking based on what is stored at home (Ganglbauer et al., 2013;Graham-Rowe et al., 2014;Watson and Meah, 2012).”
From Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications (2018) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“Most studies dealing with food waste show that consumers feel bad about wasting food (Evans, 2012; Watson and Meah, 2012) and are concerned when they throw food away.”
From Understanding the antecedents of consumers' attitudes towards doggy bags in restaurants: Concern about food waste, culture, norms and emotions (2017) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah, 2012
In the citing paper
“Consumers tend to see food waste as an economic or social issue, more than an environmental issue (14, 47, 62–64).”
From Valuing the multiple impacts of household food waste (2019) · cites this paper as [62]
In the citing paper
“As a result, there is tension between the need for food safety and nutrition and the desire to reduce food waste (Watson and Meah 2012).”
From Drivers of food waste and their implications for sustainable policy development (2016) · cites this paper as Watson and Meah 2012
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Metadata
- Authors
- Watson, M., & Meah, A.
- Affiliations
- University of Sheffield (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Watson, Matt
- Venue
- The Sociological Review
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2012-12
- Volume
- 60
- Issue
- 2_suppl
- Pages
- 102-120
- ISSN
- 0038-0261 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-954X
- OpenAlex
- W2130180720
- Cited by
- 302
- References
- 47
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 18 · 2024: 19 · 2023: 30 · 2022: 32 · 2021: 35 · 2020: 34 · 2019: 32 · 2018: 34 · 2017: 21 · 2016: 17 · 2015: 9 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 7.87
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Sociological Review (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Food Waste Reduction and Sustainability
- Social Sciences › Anthropology › Food, Nutrition, and Cultural Practices
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Waste Management and Disposal › Waste Management and Recycling
- Keywords
- food waste, food safety, social anxiety, food saving, food reuse, leftover food, food disposal, use-by date, food poisoning, thrift, everyday food practices
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