Factors Influencing Customers' Intention and Behavior to Reduce Food Waste in Online Delivery Service for Quick Service Restaurants Chains

Hesham, Mahmoud; Helmy, Nahla Mohamed; Ali, Mohamed

doi:10.21608/ijtah.2025.386809.1147

Factors Influencing Customers' Intention and Behavior to Reduce Food Waste in Online Delivery Service for Quick Service Restaurants Chains

Document Type : Research Articles

Authors

¹ Hotel Management, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef, Egypt

² Professor of Hospitality Management, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Beni-suef University

³ Assistant Professor of Hospitality Management, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Beni-suef University

10.21608/ijtah.2025.386809.1147

Abstract

Food waste is a critical environmental, economic, and social issue affecting the global community. This study focuses on understanding the factors contributing to food waste reduction in the context of online food delivery services for quick service restaurant (QSR) chains in Cairo, Egypt. The study aims to explore the relationships between food choice motives, social norms, moral norms, intention to avoid food waste, and food waste prevention behavior among users of online food delivery services. The theory of planned behavior (TPB) is used as the theoretical framework to examine how these factors influence consumer behavior towards reducing food waste. Data were collected through an online questionnaire from a sample of 400 users of online food delivery services for QSR chains in Cairo, Egypt. Data were analyzed using SPSS V.27 and partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with WarpPLS V.8.0. The results show that food choice motives and social norms significantly affect the intention to avoid food waste and food waste prevention behavior. While moral norms had a significant impact on food waste prevention behavior and a non-significant influence on intention to avoid food waste. The results also proves that the intention to avoid food waste has a significant influence on food waste prevention behavior. The findings suggest that increasing consumer awareness and providing sustainable solutions on online food delivery platforms can help mitigate food waste. This research contributes to the existing literature by addressing the gap in studying food waste in the context of online food delivery services and offers practical implications for businesses and policy makers seeking to endorse sustainable consumption and reduce food waste.

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