24th Conference of the International Federation of Operational Research Societies
Abstract Submission

2519. The Freshness Dilemma: How Customer Picking Drives Food Waste in Grocery Stores

Invited abstract in session TC-6: SCM and Consumer Behavior in Retail Stores, stream Retail Operations.

Tuesday, 10:30-12:00
Room: HG – Hörsaal 07

Authors (first author is the speaker)

1. Fabian Schäfer
Supply and Value Chain Management, Technical University of Munich
2. Tobias Winkler
Supply and Value Chain Management, Technical University of Munich
3. Kai Hoberg
Supply Chain and Operations Strategy, Kühne Logistics University
4. Alexander Hübner
Supply and Value Chain Management, Technical University Munich

Abstract

This study investigates the impact of customer withdrawal behavior in grocery stores on retail food waste. Combining expiration-date and transaction data from 211 stores and 1,877 chilled products, we develop a novel and replicable approach to quantify food waste caused by customer picking. Our empirical findings show that, on average, 45% of the food waste in our setting is caused by customers picking fresher products. We further apply an exploratory approach to identify product and store-related drivers of customer-picking waste.

Keywords

Status: accepted


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