Narrowing consumers’ supply-demand knowledge gap: Impact of health or sustainability information interventions in driving food loss reduction

Health information increases consumers’ valuation of health attributes, whereas sustainability information primarily strengthens preferences for the food-loss reduction technology itself. (2) Consumer characteristics significantly moderate these effects. Health information is particularly effective for high-income and older consumers, while sustainability information exerts stronger incentives for households with more members.

(3) The interventions exhibit heterogeneous effects across a range of psychological dimensions. Health information demonstrates broad applicability, enhancing preferences across groups with varying attitudes toward food conservation and perceived efficacy, whereas sustainability information mainly benefits consumers with strong pro-environmental attitudes. This study underscores the differential pathways through which self-oriented versus altruistic information shapes consumer preferences.

These findings provide empirical guidance for designing targeted information interventions to foster food loss reduction and support efficiency improvements across the food supply chain from the demand side.</p>