Turning Imperfection into Opportunity: Consumer Insights on Ugly Food Product Innovation

Abstract

‘Ugly’ or ‘suboptimal’ fruits and vegetables have been discarded due to their appearance. This has caused a concerning amount of food waste, considering that ‘ugly’ or ‘suboptimal’ fruits and vegetables are still edible and have the same nutrition amount compared to those considered ‘optimal’. The implementation of grading systems in the agriculture sector has led to the segregation of different looking fruits and vegetables and an assumption that ‘ugly’ or ‘suboptimal’ fruits and vegetables are less than. Several strategies have been implemented to make ‘ugly’ or ‘suboptimal’ fruits and vegetables seem more appealing to consumers. In this study, the approach to reduce the amount of food waste generated due to their appearance is by implementing them into a new product. This study aims to investigate the consumer perception of food product innovation utilizing ‘ugly’ or ‘suboptimal’ fruits and vegetables. The research model used is the Theory of Planned Behavior to help predict and understand consumer behavior. The findings highlight the importance of perceived behavioral control and attitude in purchasing intentions. The study also recognized the influence of phrasing when predicting behavior with Theory of Planned Behavior and therefore encouraged future research to delve deeper and take this insight into consideration when researching similar topics.