Discover How a Nebraska Team is Revolutionizing Food Waste Reduction by Transforming Portion Sizes with Simple Data

Pocket Science offers a quick look at new research from Husker scientists and engineers. Here, we break down the key points of their work.

In the last 50 years, food portion sizes have significantly increased. For example, the average serving of French fries is now 180% bigger than it was in the 1970s. These rising portion sizes are linked to health issues and increased food waste, which fills our landfills and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions.

To tackle these challenges, researchers are exploring ways to change how we think about portion sizes. They aim to help consumers make healthier choices while also benefiting the environment.

Recent research from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln studied how providing information about large portions affects people’s choices between small and large sandwiches.

The study, led by Hanin Hosni, Christopher Gustafson, and Simanti Banerjee, looked at how participants responded to visuals that highlighted the health risks and environmental impacts of oversized meals.

The team found that when participants learned about the downsides of larger portions, their willingness to pay for bigger sandwiches decreased. When the health and environmental information was shared one after the other, the interest in the larger sandwich dropped by 44%. In contrast, presenting the information at the same time led to a smaller drop of 19%.

These findings suggest that sharing information can help change preferences towards smaller portion sizes, which is important for addressing both obesity and food waste. The researchers believe that partnering with the food industry could help put policies in place for better portion control.