The impact of COVID-19 on food management in households of an emerging economy

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected how households buy, prepare and consume food, with resultant impacts on food waste generated. These impacts have not yet been properly understood, especially in the context of developing countries. Better understanding of the impacts of COVID-19 on food management behavior of households can aid in the design of policy interventions to reduce the amounts of wasted food during disastrous events. This becomes particularly important in light of the likely pro-longed effect held by the pandemic on household lifestyles in the future. This study has segmented households in Turkey, a rapidly emerging economy, on the basis of the effects imposed by COVID-19 on their food management behavior. A two-step clustering analysis has been conducted on the factor scores of planned shopping and cooking skills. Three segments were identified: careless planners and cooks, resourceful planners and cooks and careless planners and resourceful cooks. The segments were further described using health orientation, price consciousness, environmental concern, food waste disposal routines and self-perception of the amount of food waste variables. The first and the smallest segment, careless planners and cooks, is characterized by low levels of planned shopping and cooking skills, with resultant significant wastage. The largest segment of resourceful planners and cooks demonstrates excellent planned shopping and cooking skills, with resultant small wastage. The segment of careless planners and resourceful cooks showcases excellent cooking skills, but poor skills of planned shopping. The study provides first known evidence to understand how Turkish households differ on the grounds of their food management behavior in the time of the pandemic, thus laying a foundation for future segmentation studies in Turkey and beyond.