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[deleted] t1_ja7v049 wrote

Reply to comment by nmxt in ELI5: why do grocery stores in the US keep such a large inventory? Aside from being prepared for episodic panic buying like toilet paper or bottled water, is there an economic reason to do this? How much of the food ends up going bad? by DrEverythingBAlright

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RedBeard_the_Great t1_ja7vts7 wrote

Could you share your source for a third of all food at grocery stores getting thrown away? It would be interesting to see their breakdown (ie. produce vs canned goods).

I also wouldn’t be surprised if a third of all total food gets discarded in the US if they include agriculture and restaurants (like the chickens that die from avian flu and food that doesn’t get finished due to oversized portions), but it seems odd that notoriously low-margin grocery stores would be that wasteful.

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WholeFoodsWholeLife t1_ja7xvwe wrote

Grocery stores toss closer to 5-10% of food, not a third. That statistic refers to food waste at consumer and retail levels.

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lucky_ducker t1_ja8fi3i wrote

... and about a third of that food is channeled into local and regional foodbanking networks, ultimately ending up going to charities.

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Silver-Ad8136 t1_jabsio8 wrote

Of course they're not, but some people are just married to these narratives big businesses are evul

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[deleted] t1_ja7wkqr wrote

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WholeFoodsWholeLife t1_ja7x9j3 wrote

That statistic refers to food loss and retail and consumer levels, not just retail levels. Grocery stores do throw away food but not 31% of it or they would go out of business. Shrink is at the retail level is closer to 5-10%.

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[deleted] t1_ja7ykbb wrote

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WholeFoodsWholeLife t1_ja7zum7 wrote

Oh no, it's still way too much for sure. And part of that waste is definitely caused by stores trying to keep up appearances of full shelves. At the store I worked at we did try really hard to minimize waste though, but then stuff happens like fridges breaking, deliveries getting messed up, customers returning food, etc. I just wanted to clarify because stores are motivated by profits to not toss food unnecessarily, most of the time. But they can still do better.

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Damoncord t1_ja8d3kv wrote

I've worked at some grocery stores, one place would actually have us pull products a month before date so they could mark it for quick sale, marking it down again at a week before the best by date. We didn't end up throwing away much expired product.

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abusche t1_ja7xmab wrote

your 1/3 number isnt specific to grocery stores, thats across the whole chain, including food people have on their plates at home and put in the trash. so doesnt really apply here.

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RedBeard_the_Great t1_ja7xk0b wrote

Thanks, that was quite eye-opening! The USDA does say that 31% loss is at the “retail and consumer level,” so it makes way more sense to me knowing that consumers and restaurants also contribute to that figure.

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abusche t1_ja7xqog wrote

including food you put on your plate and dont eat, sure. but thats got nothing to do with anything grocery stores are doing.

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