Reducing plate waste in all-inclusive resorts: Strategy, precaution and barriers

Abstract

Plate waste constitutes approximately a third of the food waste generated in the hospitality industry. Almost all this plate waste might also be prevented. This study intended to explore the strategies and measures tourists adopted for plate waste reduction and the barriers they encountered while implementing these measures. A qualitative research design was adopted for this purpose. Data were acquired through semi-structured interviews conducted with 23 tourists holidaying in an all-inclusive resort. Four themes emerged following the performed analyses: feelings about plate waste, strategies implemented for plate waste reduction, measures proposed for plate waste reduction, and barriers to plate waste reduction. This study contributes to understanding tourists’ behavior to mitigate and avoid plate waste in the hospitality industry. The findings suggest important implications for policy makers, decision makers, industry representatives, businesses tackling plate waste, and other stakeholders responsible for reducing their waste and protecting the environment. Besides, academics working on tourists’ behavior towards plate waste might benefit from this study. This study further provides a basis for reducing plate waste, thus minimizing the environmental damage caused by the tourism industry and developing interventions. Plate waste is a relatively novel and under-researched phenomenon, particularly in the hospitality industry. For this reason, this study contributes significantly to the existing literature about plate waste.