By: Ava H.
Over the summer, I took an Introduction to Environmental Studies college course, and this is one of the insightful journal articles we read. Here is a summary of the article that I wrote.
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Through insightful research and analysis, “Constructing and mobilizing ‘the consumer’: Responsibility, consumption and the politics of sustainability” combines the concept of individualized responsibility and food waste reduction in the UK to explore the political rationalities behind responsibility and consumption. By analyzing these different concepts within consumerism, the article strives to “argue for the importance of exploring specific instances of sustainable consumption governance.” Taking individual responsibility as a consumer can be a complex issue, as it can often take an empirically rich approach that leaves many people out of the conversation, leading to the idea that individual action for the environment demonstrates one’s economic privilege. However, these obstacles can be overcome by systematically approaching what the consumer’s role is within sustainable consumption. By incorporating the study of food waste, a better idea can be gained about the consumer and corporate role within sustainability.
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During the first wave of analysis, it was evident that consumers have a significant role in responsibilization and that there are intricate corporate processes that mobilize consumers. Organizations agree that consumers are at the root of the problem of food waste, and the article continues in evaluating why food is being wasted.
The problem with only focusing on individual action is that it takes the conversation away from the current problematic government limitations. However, consumers can have the potential to respond accordingly to food waste issues, by constantly buying only what they need. The motivation for this individual action must stem within the individual, and cannot be forced upon by someone else. Yet, bringing the environment as a constant reminder to consumers can help consumers to consume more sustainably, as they will not ignore the detrimental impacts of climate change as easily if they are constantly reminded by it.
In the second wave of analysis, the politics of blame were departed, and the focus shifted to the fact that food waste is a systemic issue that requires action between both the food industry and consumers in order to mitigate food waste. This goal is to move away from only focusing on responsibilization of consumers and “consider the distribution of power to influence outcomes.” Many supermarkets in the second wave have begun to take further accountability for food waste by working directly with suppliers and to discourage discounts that push consumers to buy more.
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Although another motive for supermarkets would be the argument that reducing food waste would also reduce costs, it is not clear how the economic interests of huge supermarkets would be served by reducing food waste. This is why many supermarkets just assume that consumers might want to waste more and therefore buy more. Overall, food waste is quite a broad issue that can be difficult to narrow down and identify one significant cause, which is why it is important to take both the consumer and company into consideration.
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In order to obtain a better grasp on food waste, research needs to be conducted into why consumers waste more. Many supermarkets implement several psychological tactics within stores to make consumers buy more, so it can also be very insightful to observe these product placements to see how manipulative they actually are, and whether the buyer actually ends up using this food or just ends up wasting it.
It is also important to take into account the fact that many retailers stated “that their customers would shop elsewhere if they were not helped to reduce the food that they waste,” which confirms the notion that individuals can in fact vote with their dollar and enact meaningful change. This brings further complexity into the food waste issue, as it critically questions the true intention of supermarkets to engage in food waste reduction, since it could be for the morals or for the sake of consumers’ demands. However, the main takeaway from the article is that sustainable consumption tends to focus on how to consume less instead of consuming differently, which is still great, but the wasteful system in place needs to be transformed for a significant reduction in food waste.
Future studies of sustainable consumption must encompass specific government programs and the analysis of their political rationalities, which can help further develop the conversations about defining the current consumption system. As a result, political programs can become much more informed on their effects of responsibilizing consumer subjects. Like many environmental issues, consumption involves several disciplines to be taken account, and if humanity can combine political aspects as well as improved public access to consumer education, issues such as food waste can be mitigated through effective systematic change.
Discussion Questions:
Do you think that your local supermarket does a great job about managing food waste? What are some areas that they need to improve on? To what extent does your supermarket implement psychological tactics to provoke consumers to buy more?
What are some effective methods for individuals wanting to advocate for their supermarket to take food waste more seriously?