*2.6. Ethical Considerations*

The respective storeowners agreed that their store would be included in the study; they facilitated interviews and observations in the FV department, gave access to the waste data, and consented to the publication of the results. All the respondents gave their consent to use their answers in this paper, on the condition of anonymity. The study has been communicated to the stores in an open and transparent manner. The outcome has been presented to and discussed with the storeowners and employees.

### **3. Results** binations and interactions of multiple causes. Based on the employees' perspective from semi-structured interviews and participating observations, and data on waste, provided

**3. Results**

*2.6. Ethical Considerations* 

Food waste in the FV departments was not a result of a single cause, but rather combinations and interactions of multiple causes. Based on the employees' perspective from semi-structured interviews and participating observations, and data on waste, provided by the stores, four main themes emerged that describe different aspects of causes and measures of food waste at supermarkets. The themes were policy, practice, people, and product. No hierarchy has been detected among these four main themes, but they were all connected and dependent on each other, and sometimes the themes partially overlapped each other. Each theme consists of several sub-themes, and the themes will be elaborated in sections further down. An illustration of all themes and sub-themes is presented in Figure 2. by the stores, four main themes emerged that describe different aspects of causes and measures of food waste at supermarkets. The themes were policy, practice, people, and product. No hierarchy has been detected among these four main themes, but they were all connected and dependent on each other, and sometimes the themes partially overlapped each other. Each theme consists of several sub-themes, and the themes will be elaborated in sections further down. An illustration of all themes and sub-themes is presented in Figure 2.

was studied, so pre-store waste [52], take-back agreements [53] and other in-store opera-

The respective storeowners agreed that their store would be included in the study; they facilitated interviews and observations in the FV department, gave access to the waste data, and consented to the publication of the results. All the respondents gave their consent to use their answers in this paper, on the condition of anonymity. The study has been communicated to the stores in an open and transparent manner. The outcome has

Food waste in the FV departments was not a result of a single cause, but rather com-

*Sustainability* **2022**, *14*, x FOR PEER REVIEW 7 of 20

tions for unsaleable products [54] are beyond the scope of this study.

been presented to and discussed with the storeowners and employees.

**Figure 2.** Causes of and measures to reduce food waste at supermarkets' fruit and vegetables department from the employees' perspective, categorised thematically.

### **Figure 2.** Causes of and measures to reduce food waste at supermarkets' fruit and vegetables department from the employees' perspective, categorised thematically. *3.1. Policy*

*3.1. Policy*  Based on the employees' perspective, one theme that influenced the causes of and measures to reduce food waste was policy. It includes guidelines describing how the employees should deal with different areas; adaptation of national legislation, adaptation of the retail chain's guidelines, internal waste targets, waste information feedback, size of storage and cooling facilities, design of FV department and display units, participation in campaigns, number of staff and time allocation. The employees did not make any decisions about these areas, since it was rather the responsibility of the managers. Nevertheless, the employees had been delegated the responsibility to operate the FV department, and had a pronounced mandate to execute daily work routines and make their own decisions within the framework of the policies.
