Four steps you can take to avoid ‘perceived scarcity’ and prevent food waste

Perceived scarcity can push people to acquire more than they need, leading to food waste. (Unsplash+) Four steps you can take to avoid ‘perceived scarcity’ and prevent food waste Published: June 15, 2026 1.59pm EDT Share article Print article The grocery store is a busy place, full of signs and signals that we may or may not always notice. Picture yourself in your usual store: do your eyes get drawn to a “limited quantities” sign or a “buy now before it’s gone” promotion? Do you ever toss an extra item into your cart because of it? The reality is, you probably didn’t need that extra item, and a week later, half of it has ended up in the garbage. This isn’t just poor planning; it reflects a psychological trigger that most of us don’t realize is shaping our behaviour — and retailers use it widely. Food waste continues to be a massive global problem. A 2021 United Nations report found that about 60 per cent of global food waste comes from households. Public campaigns appropriately encourage people to plan better, shop more carefully, and use and freeze leftovers. These are effective strategies, but they don’t tell the whole story. Our research highlights an additional layer: psychological forces in the marketplace can quietly shape how much we buy in the first place, which can ultimately lead to more waste. Intuitively, we might expect that feeling short on resources would make people more careful, conserve what they have and waste less. And in some cases, that’s true: people with fewer financial resources do tend to waste less food. But our research explores what happens when people feel they don’t have enough, or perceived scarcity, regardless of what is in their fridge or bank account. And that’s where the pattern shifts. Perceived scarcity A customer looks at refrigerated items at a grocery store in Pleasanton, Calif. (AP Photo/Terry Chea) When people experience perceived scarcity, this activates an acquisition goal — a mental drive to secure more resources. When food is readily available, such as when stores are well stocked and people have purchasing power, perceived scarcity can push people to acquire more than they actually need. Think of the COVID-19 toilet paper rush, but with everyday groceries. This mismatch between what people buy and what they actually consume leads to increased food waste. Although scarcity can drive us to buy more, our physiological needs (how much we need to eat) stay the same. This surplus often becomes food…