How much food do you waste?

How much food do you waste?

43% of Kiwis throw away food from their refrigerators at least every week

Auckland, 28 October – The most recent survey by consumer satisfaction company, Canstar Blue has revealed that close to half of New Zealanders throw away food from their fridge at least every week.

Food wastage is a problem globally and here at home; recent research shows that $900 million worth of food is wasted annually by New Zealand households, says Canstar New Zealand General Manager, Jose George.

“According to WasteMINZ, this means Kiwi households send about 80 kilos of edible food to the tip every year.

“Aucklanders are most likely to throw away forgotten food (51%), while those in Otago are the least likely to. This is perhaps likely due to the large student population and their fear of overspending on essentials such as groceries.”

Those under the age of 30 are the most likely of the age groups to add to the “produced, but never eaten” problem with 61% having to clear out their food on a weekly basis.

Women (51%) are also significantly more likely than men (36%) to have to discard uneaten food from their fridges.

There are plenty of ways Kiwis can avoid food wastage, saving both the environment and their bank balance. These include checking use by dates, portion control & avoiding over-catering for a meal, meal planning, storage and saving leftovers, says George.

What state is your fridge in?

The majority of Kiwis clean their fridge on a monthly basis (44%), 23% say they clean it weekly, while the least hygienic among us admit to never cleaning their fridge (11%).

Many Kiwis are less concerned about the aesthetics of their fridge with more than half (52%) purchasing their fridge due to its particular internal layout while 22% saying that they placed greater importance on looks than they did on functionality when it came to their purchasing decision.

Eighteen per cent of New Zealanders don’t care what fridge they buy as long as it’s the cheapest, with price being a bigger factor for under 30s (31%) than those aged 60-69 (9%).

Where do you keep your beersies?

Close to thirty per cent of Kiwis have a beer fridge in their house. Those in the Bay of Plenty are most likely to need a dedicated space to keep their beers cold (38%) while those in Otago are least likely (9%). Half of the nation have a separate deep freezer (50%).

When it comes to new technology, men (26%) are more likely to consider buying a fridge that has TV or internet connectivity than women (17%).

The survey asked respondents to rate their refrigerator across seven variables:

1. Reliability

2. Value for money

3. Food freshness

4. After sale service and warranty

5. Internal layout

6. Quality of fittings and fixtures (e.g. shelves)

7. Overall satisfaction with the refrigerator

This year’s winner of the Canstar Blue award for consumer satisfaction is Samsung who had a near perfect score across the board.

Samsung received five stars for value for money (27%) and internal layout (25%) which were the variables that consumers rated as their first and second drivers of satisfaction with their fridge, says George.

“Samsung fridges are full of innovative surprises that make living easy. They have a wide range of design options to suit any family or living situation and were the only brand to receive a five-star rating for the quality of their fittings and fixtures.”

Refrigerators by region: (only exceptions)

Auckland: Aucklanders are the most likely (equal with Bay of Plenty) to throw away food from the fridge at least every week (51%), most likely to consider purchasing a fridge with TV or internet connectivity (31%) and least likely to have a separate deep freezer (43%).

Waikato: Those in the Waikato are least likely to have bought their fridge due to its particular internal layout (46%), most likely to have placed great importance on looks over functionality when it came to purchasing a fridge (28%) and most likely to have a separate deep freezer (58%).

Canterbury: Cantabrians are least likely to say that they don’t care about what fridge they buy as long as it’s the cheapest (13%).

Otago: Those in Otago are least likely to have a beer fridge in their house (9%), least likely to have bought a fridge only to find that when they got it home it didn’t fit where they wanted it to go (0%), least likely to have placed greater importance on looks than functionality when purchasing their fridge (14%), least likely to throw away food from the fridge at least every week (33%) and least likely to consider purchasing a fridge with TV or internet connectivity (9%).

Bay of Plenty: Those in the Bay of Plenty are most likely to have bought their fridge due to its particular internal layout (59%), most likely to say that they don’t care what fridge they buy as long as it’s the cheapest (23%), most likely to have a beer fridge in their home (38%), most likely to have bought a fridge only to find that when they got it home it didn’t’ fit the space where they wanted it to go (18%) and most likely (equal with Auckland) to throw away food from the fridge at least every week (51%).

About the survey

Canstar Blue commissions respected professional market research agency Colmar Brunton Australia, to undertake research on our behalf using SSI NZ panel.

The outcomes reported here are the results from a survey of Kiwis who have bought a new refrigerator in the last three years. In this case there were 585 people surveyed.

*This geographical breakdown outlines exceptions only.

ENDS

© Scoop Media