Aug 25, 2026 · 26 min · 11 segments
On this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards chats with Dr. Brenna Ellison, director of the Center for Food Conservation and Waste Reduction, about what research can tell us about why food…
Brenna EllisonGuest
Gage EdwardsHost
So families, if they want to cut their food waste in half, let's say over the next month, any practical changes that you think your research would suggest that they make to make the biggest difference?
And I think the, the... one of the most surprising things that people find out is just when they have to actually sit and track it for even five days, it's not always the things that they thought were happening.
So, um, I would, I would say the best way is to actually spend time tracking it at home first and then see what happens.
And then I think after that I would pick, you know, just one or two small tangible, like, changes that you can make, and you can have the people in your household, if you have, like, a family in a household, but even if you're just on your own, like, what are one or two things you can really commit to and try? Um, so in my household the...
my, my personal food waste vice I guess is I'm an optimistic vegetable buyer.
I always buy lots and then, yeah, my kids don't wanna eat them or I'm just like, "Ugh, I'm tired," or they just go bad really quickly sometimes.
Uh- You know, something like that, or I'm going to build in a leftovers night in my meal plan, or I'm gonna budget a takeout night.
Just, like, picking one or two tangible things to try, I would say is, like, the way to start, right? And if you can build one good habit, then maybe the next month you can build on one more new thing to try or something like that.
In a lot of households there might be one person that's responsible for more of the food tasks than another.
Like, try to make it a family activity if it's a big household, um, that helps you have more accountability partners, or even putting a meal plan, um, on your refrigerator so everyone sees it and it's not just one person's job to, like, manage that mentally, and have others kind of help them be accountable to it.
S- that's actually some of the research we're looking at now is, like, how does stress relate to, like, confidence in food management behaviors? How does it relate to actual food waste outcomes? So that, that is some of the stuff we're working on right now.
Just need more happy people and we'll have less food waste, right? [laughs] Um, all right, so growing attention around food waste.
Like I said, we talked about this on the show at length, uh, because it, it's going to be a conversation for probably ever.
So families, if they want to cut their food waste in half, let's say over the next month, any practical changes that you think your research would suggest that they make to make the biggest difference?
And I think the, the... one of the most surprising things that people find out is just when they have to actually sit and track it for even five days, it's not always the things that they thought were happening.
So, um, I would, I would say the best way is to actually spend time tracking it at home first and then see what happens.
And then I think after that I would pick, you know, just one or two small tangible, like, changes that you can make, and you can have the people in your household, if you have, like, a family in a household, but even if you're just on your own, like, what are one or two things you can really commit to and try? Um, so in my household the...
my, my personal food waste vice I guess is I'm an optimistic vegetable buyer.
I always buy lots and then, yeah, my kids don't wanna eat them or I'm just like, "Ugh, I'm tired," or they just go bad really quickly sometimes.
Uh- You know, something like that, or I'm going to build in a leftovers night in my meal plan, or I'm gonna budget a takeout night.
Just, like, picking one or two tangible things to try, I would say is, like, the way to start, right? And if you can build one good habit, then maybe the next month you can build on one more new thing to try or something like that.
In a lot of households there might be one person that's responsible for more of the food tasks than another.
Like, try to make it a family activity if it's a big household, um, that helps you have more accountability partners, or even putting a meal plan, um, on your refrigerator so everyone sees it and it's not just one person's job to, like, manage that mentally, and have others kind of help them be accountable to it.
S- that's actually some of the research we're looking at now is, like, how does stress relate to, like, confidence in food management behaviors? How does it relate to actual food waste outcomes? So that, that is some of the stuff we're working on right now.
Just need more happy people and we'll have less food waste, right? [laughs] Um, all right, so growing attention around food waste.
Like I said, we talked about this on the show at length, uh, because it, it's going to be a conversation for probably ever.
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3 of 7
Track Waste, Then Start Small
Small household changes can prevent surprising food waste.
Let Households Choose Solutions
Households need solutions tailored to their habits.
The Myth Of No Waste
A simple audit can challenge household assumptions.
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