Abstract
A self-administered questionnaire survey concerning food waste was conducted among students of national registered dietitian programs at six universities in Osaka Prefecture, and responses were received from 954 students (90.9% response rate). The results showed that 84.2% of the respondents were aware of food waste and that 26.8% were aware of SDGs, and awareness of both tended to increase as years of study increased. Those who often/sometimes directly dispose of food at home accounted for 35.7% of the respondents, and the most commonly disposed of foods were vegetables (47.8%), breads (32.2%), and milk and dairy products (22.4%). As years of study increased, awareness of food waste increased, but this did not lead to much change in terms of behaviors. In addition, living alone was a significant factor influencing direct disposal at home. For those living alone, the cooking frequency significantly decreased as the years of study increased.
There are various differences in situations among university students, such as whether they live alone or with family and whether they cook or not. Given this, it is necessary to disseminate information and raise awareness such that it reaches younger generations by providing concrete examples of knowledge and actions that are easy to put into practice based on the actual situation of each university student, not only their studies at university but also including the use of SNS.
