This research employed a cross-sectional survey to investigate the factors associated with the generation of wasted food within Al Ahsa community in addition to the participants’ attitudes toward reducing food waste. The study also explored the potential impact of COVID-19 exposure on dietary habits and food waste.

This study was conducted in Al Ahsa governate, Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia during December 2023. The study included resident population of Al Ahsa governate from different nationalities. However, the excluded population involves those who are below 18 years old and not living in the Al Ahsa governate.

A convenient sampling technique, non-probability sampling technique that involves selecting participants based on their availability and accessibility. While convenient sampling offers accessibility, it is essential to acknowledge its limitations, such as potential selection bias. Results may not be fully representative of the entire population. Therefore, findings should be interpreted with consideration of these limitations. A sample size calculation was performed to ensure adequate statistical power. The goal is to achieve a representative sample that reflects the diversity of Al Ahsa’s population. Using power analysis statistical packages G*Power for sample size calculation for multiple regression, considering medium effect size (f² = 0.15) and a significance level (p-value) p < 05, with a power of 80%, the estimated sample size will be 121 people. Because we are surveying a population, we will oversize the collected samples to make sure that we have covered the objective of this study.

Participants were provided with clear information about the study’s purpose. Participants’ consent to participate in this study was implied by their response, since the participants were informed that “by pressing next, they consent to participate in this study.” Participants’ identities are kept confidential and anonymized during analysis to ensure privacy. Participation in the study is entirely voluntary, and participants have the right to withdraw at any stage without consequence.

The research was performed in accordance with relevant guidelines/regulations. The Institutional review board (IRB) of research center at Almoosa Health Group with the log No:ARC-23.12.13 approved this study.

The Data of the sampling will be collected by the survey which including the following sections:

Survey form was administered electronically using online Google Forms. Recruitment of participants includes the following: social media and another multi-platform approaches to reach a diverse audience. The researchers ensured that the online survey was easily accessible and mobile-friendly to accommodate participants using various devices. After data collection and data entry are completed, Microsoft Excel was transferred for statistical analysis.

Table 1 illustrates the demographic characteristics of the surveyed participants (N: 257), revealing a predominant Saudi nationality (82.9%), a higher representation of females (83.3%), a significant proportion not currently employed (62.3%), and diverse fields of study, with Healthcare being the most prevalent (56.4%). Additionally, notable occupational categories include teachers (13.2%), healthcare providers (12.8%), and those in managerial positions (8.9%). A considerable portion of participants preferred not to disclose their income (39.7%), while among those who did, a noteworthy percentage earned 10,000 SAR or more (35.8%). The descriptive statistics also revealed a diverse age distribution among participants (mean = 28.94, SD = 10.54) and variable family sizes (mean = 5.51, SD = 2.71).

Regarding the frequency of throwing away food at home, the results demonstrated a range of responses from 1.00 to 5.00, with a mean of 2.81 and a SD of 1.05, indicating moderate variability in participants’ disposal frequency and providing insights into their food waste habits. The causes of food waste in households, arranged in descending order based on the percentage of cases, are as follows: the food item is close to or has already passed the expiration date label (61.1%), the food item is spoiled (41.2%), I do not like to eat stale food (30.0%), the food item is cooked in excessive amounts (28.8%), I already bought a new one (5.8%), and the food item is not tasty (5.4%; Figure 1).

Data in Figure 2, shows the frequency of wasting food when eating out or ordering online (mean = 1.90, SD = 0.89) indicates a limited tendency. The primary causes identified include a preference for trying a variety of dishes (40.1% of cases), difficulty estimating the appropriate food quantity (32.9%), challenges associated with large serving sizes (28.1%), dissatisfaction with taste (15.0%), reluctance to share meals (3.6%), embarrassment in ordering a small quantity (4.8%), and a disinclination to take away leftovers (18.6%).

On the other hand, a moderate impact of the pandemic on their dietary habits overall (Mean = 2.87, SD = 1.42). Moreover, participants tended to consume more home-cooked food during the pandemic for safety reasons, indicating a higher mean score of 3.85 with a SD of 1.40. Conversely, the consumption of delivered food increased to a lesser extent during the lockdown, as reflected in a mean score of 2.05 with a SD of 1.26 (Table 2), when it comes to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on dietary habits it was shown that the effect as perceived by the respondents for mean of 2.87 and SD of 1.42 suggesting a moderate impact.

Table 3 represents data on daily food wastage, revealing that respondents exhibited varying levels of waste in different categories. Cooking waste (Mean = 1.98, SD = 1.24) showed the highest level of waste, followed by untouched cooked food (Mean = 1.85, SD = 1.21) and leftovers from cooked or delivered dishes (Mean = 1.81, SD = 1.12).

Participants’ practices in separating and disposing of kitchen food waste are shown in Table 4. About 39.1% of the respondents reported disposing of kitchen food waste without separation, followed by 37.2% indicated that they separate kitchen food waste before disposal, while 23.7% reported separating it and then reusing or recycling it. This suggests that a significant portion of participants do not engage in the separation of kitchen food waste, emphasizing an opportunity for promoting more sustainable waste management practices.

Presents participants’ attitudes toward sorting food waste from general household garbage, with mean scores reflecting their sentiments. The highest mean score is observed for religious and cultural beliefs (Mean = 3.36, SD = 1.60), Following this, participants expressed moderate agreement about they do not have an idea about what to do after sorting (Mean = 2.58, SD = 1.53) and that the local authorities apply a penalty (Mean = 2.30, SD = 1.46). The lowest mean scores were reported for their thinking that this is the role of local authorities” (Mean = 1.95, SD = 1.24) and sorting because they feel embarrassed (Mean = 2.09, SD = 1.38, suggesting lower agreement with these reasons for sorting; Table 5).

Participants’ attitudes toward reducing food waste are represented in Table 6, where the highest mean score is associated with sharing food with neighbors (Mean = 3.96, SD = 1.32), suggesting a strong endorsement of the idea that communal sharing can be an effective strategy for waste reduction; followed by the availability of food items in different sizes (Mean = 3.68, SD = 1.44) and “COVID-19 affect food waste” (Mean = 3.26, SD = 1.26). On the other hand, the lowest mean scores were observed for cooking at home generates more food waste (Mean = 2.77, SD = 1.35) and offers while shopping for food (Mean = 2.77, SD = 1.49), indicating less agreement with these perspectives on reducing food waste.

The Correlation between demographics, food waste, and attitude toward food waste were studied. The family size shows a positive correlation with their attitude toward reducing food waste (r = 0.130, p > 0.05). The frequency of throwing away food when you eat out/order online is positively correlated with the respondents’ attitude toward reducing food waste (r = 0.180, p > 0.05) and their attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households (r = 0.152, p > 0.05). In addition, a significant positive correlation between the respondents’ attitudes toward reducing food waste and cooking waste/day (r = 0.179, p > 0.05), leftovers of plates from cooked/delivered dishes/day (r = 0.199, p > 0.05), and untouched cooked food/day (r = 0.207, p > 0.05). Finally, attitude toward reducing food waste is highly correlated with their attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households (r = 0.406, p > 0.05). Importantly, t-test results between Saudi and non-Saudi participants reveal significant differences in frequently wasted food when you eat out/order online (t = 2.38, p = 0.02) and attitudes toward food waste sorting from general household garbage (t = −2.70, p = 0.01). Specifically, non-Saudi participants report a lower frequency of wasting food when eating out/ordering online compared to their Saudi counterparts and a higher rate of attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households. On the other hand, a significant gender difference in the perceived effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on participants’ dietary habits (t = −2.01, p = 0.04), where males (Mean = 2.48, SD = 0.91) reported a slightly higher impact compared to females (Mean = 2.42, SD = 0.88). However, no significant gender differences were found in other food waste-related variables, including the frequency of food waste, the amount of food wasted per day, attitudes toward food waste sorting, and attitudes toward reducing food waste. The ANOVA results revealed that the daily amount of food wasted per day exhibited significant variations among groups with different income levels (F = 3.046, p = 0.018). Specifically, participants earning between 5,000 and 6,999 SAR demonstrated the highest mean amount of daily food waste (Mean = 2.5208, SD = 1.42) compared to other income categories. This finding suggests a noteworthy association between income and the extent of daily food waste. A t-test indicated that there was a difference between participants who work and those who do not work with attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households (t = −3.16, p = 0.002) with higher mean for participants who are working (M = 2.64, SD = 0.83), attitudes toward reducing food waste (t = −2.04, p = 0.042) with higher mean for participants who are working (M = 3.63, SD = 0.77), and the amount of food wasted per day (t = −2.95., p = 0.010) with higher mean for participants who are working (M = 2.11, SD = 1.23). Moreover, ANOVA indicated that a Doctorate level of education or equivalent has a significant difference from other levels of education regarding attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households (F = 3.84, p = 0.002). Participants with a Doctorate level of education exhibited a higher mean (M = 2.90, SD = 0.72) compared to other education levels. The ANOVA results reveal noteworthy distinctions in attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households based on the field of study (F = 3.14, p = 0.009). Participants with a background in commerce exhibited higher mean scores (M = 2.81, SD = 0.84). Additionally, the amount of food wasted per day showed a significant difference among participants with different fields of study (F = 2.39, p = 0.038). Specifically, those in the field of education reported a higher mean in daily food waste (M = 2.17, SD = 1.39).

The results showed that the majority of participants were from Saudi nationality (82.9%), females (83.3%), most of them were young with an age mean of 30 years, and the family size mean was around 6. The majority of study participants were not employed (62.3%). The employed ones belong mainly to the healthcare field (56.4%). Additionally, notable occupational categories include teachers (13.2%), a noteworthy percentage earning 10,000 SAR or more (35.8%). On the other hand, the study has shown that the participants tended to throw away food at home 2–3 times per week, indicating moderate variability in participants’ disposal frequency and providing insights into their food waste habits. The causes of food waste in households were mainly related to expiry date, since 61.1% of the study participant declared that they throw away food when it is close to or has already passed the expiration date label or if the food item is spoiled (41.2%), few of them thrown away food if it is not tasty (5.4%).When it comes to food waste generated when eating out or ordering online, it was found that the participants rarely throw food, and in case of wasting food the most common causes were related to participants’ preference for trying a variety of dishes (40.1% of cases) or difficulty of estimating the appropriate food quantity (32.9%). In the present study it was found that, nowadays, the participants’ dietary habit was not significantly affected by COVID-19 pandemic which coincide with other studies showing that, after the normalization of COVID-19, the food waste generated by dining out is likely to increase significantly (21–16). However, during the pandemic the participants agreed that they were more adherent to home-cooked food for safety reasons and not consuming delivered food (mean 3.85, SD 1.40), these findings were in accordance with Parker and his colleagues who showed that eating food from restaurants declined and, for some, home-based cooking increased [United Nations (UN), 2021]. Moreover, it has shown that the COVID-19 pandemic mildly decreased food waste generated at the household level since with the implementation of stay-at-home orders and lockdown measures, many people have had to change their dietary and lifestyle habits which made food more valuable (Shimpo et al., 2021). The quantity of food wasted per day is a good measurement of food waste trends. Therefore, it was shown that the study participants generated around 250-500 g/day of food waste from cooking waste, leftover dishes, and untouched food, respectively. When study participants were asked about their adherence to separating food waste from general household garbage, it was found that only one-quarter of them reported separating food items and then reusing or recycling them. However, 39.1 and 37.2% reported that they disposed of kitchen food waste without separation or separate kitchen food waste before disposal, respectively. The participants’ attitude toward food waste sorting from general household garbage was studied, and it was shown that the majority of study participants do not throw food due to religious and cultural beliefs (Mean = 3.36, SD = 1.60), a moderate agreement that they have no idea about what to do after sorting (Mean = 2.58, SD = 1.53), and they will adhere to sort food waste if the local authorities apply a penalty (Mean = 2.30, SD = 1.46). On the other, the participants’ attitude toward reducing food waste revealed that the majority of them agreed that sharing food with neighbors decreases food waste (Mean = 3.96, SD = 1.32). Moreover, they agreed that the availability of food items in different sizes decreases wasting food (Mean = 3.68, SD = 1.44) and COVID-19 pandemic made food more valuable (Mean = 3.26, SD = 1.26). However, they declared that offers while shopping for food do not affect in increasing food waste (Mean = 2.77, SD = 1.49).

In this study, non-Saudi participants significantly report a lower frequency of wasting food when eating out/ordering online compared to their Saudi counterparts and a higher rate of attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households (p = 0.01), these findings where in accordance with other studies showing that Saudi citizens showed the behavior of cooking frequently and profligately which results in increased amount of wasted food (Baig et al., 2022), in addition the non-Saudi nationalities tend more to save food, re-use and recycle it that reflects a holistic way of thinking about the economy as an entire system and strategies that ensure their food security as well as saving money, since personal saving as a migrant is an important indicator of future prosperity when they retire or return to home country. Moreover, a significant gender difference in the perceived effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on participants’ dietary habits (p = 0.04), where males reported a slightly higher impact compared to females (Mean = 2.42, SD = 0.88). These findings indicate that gender may play a nuanced role in the context of the pandemic’s influence on dietary habits among participants which is in accordance with Ben Hassen et al., 2022 who showed that the COVID-19 pandemic-related measures have resulted in many lifestyle modifications, including changes in diet and food buying patterns among adults (32). Moreover, Parker et al., 2023 declared that in their study males reported more changes in dietary composition. However, no significant gender differences were found in other food waste-related variables, including the frequency of food waste, the amount of food wasted per day, attitudes toward food waste sorting, and attitudes toward reducing food waste. These findings were in accordance with Bretter et al. (2022) and Principato et al. (2015) who found no gender differences in food waste generation. When it comes to age group, this study showed that age was negatively correlated to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on participants’ dietary habits (r = −0.129, p < 0.05), indicating that younger participants think that the COVID-19 pandemic affected their dietary habits, this finding was in correlation with a study conducted by Rodgers et al. (2021) who found that age was one of the demographic characteristics that influence the eating lifestyle during the pandemic. In this study, the family size shows a positive correlation with the participants’ attitude toward reducing food waste (r = 0.130, p > 0.05) indicating that larger family sizes are associated with a greater attitude toward reducing food waste. This finding was in accordance with previous studies showing that the amount of food waste generated per capita decreases with increasing household sizes (Jrissen et al., 2015; Schanes et al., 2018). Although, the majority of participants in this study preferred not to declare their income, participants earning between 5000 and 6999 SAR demonstrated the highest mean amount of daily food waste (Mean = 2.5208, SD = 1.42). This finding suggests a noteworthy association between income and the extent of daily food waste, which is in coincidence with Tonini et al. (2023) who showed that income was found to be a predicting factor for food waste generation. Moreover, a t-test indicated that there was a difference between participants who work and those who do not work with attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households (t = −3.16, p = 0.002), attitudes toward reducing food waste (t = −2.04, p = 0.042), and the amount of food wasted per day (t = −2.95., p = 0.010) with higher mean for participants who are working (M = 2.64, SD = 0.83), (M = 3.63, SD = 0.77) and (M = 2.11, SD = 1.23), respectively, these findings are in accordance with Parizeau et al. (2015), who proved that the fewer time and/or money, the lower likelihood of food waste generation. However, some studies showed that employed people tend to produce more food waste, since food preparation practices for working people, such as emphasizing daily fresh ingredients versus batch cooking, also impact waste levels (Schanes et al., 2018). When it comes to the level of education, a doctorate level of education or equivalent has a significant difference from other levels of education regarding attitudes toward food waste sorting from general households (F = 3.84, p = 0.002). This suggests that individuals with advanced educational qualifications may have distinct attitudes toward food waste sorting, emphasizing the potential influence of higher education on perspectives related to household waste management. Accordingly, studies have found that the higher the education level, the less food waste is produced. These findings were in accordance with other studies showing that people with higher education levels have better discernment abilities and are less likely to be influenced by impulse purchases (Liu et al., 2023; Wu et al., 2019). However, these findings were in contradiction with some studies with the opposite view showing a positive correlation between their level of education and the amount of food waste they produce (Schneider, 2008), since they believe that highly educated people have more chance to be persons with full-time employment with less time to/or do not want to plan and use their food stock (Schneider, 2008; Wassermann and Schneider, 2005). Although, occupation or job role showed no significant association with food waste generation in terms of the frequency of food waste, the amount of food wasted per day, attitudes toward food waste sorting, and attitudes toward reducing food waste, the field of education was an important predicting factor of wasting food since participants with a background in commerce exhibited higher mean scores (M = 2.81, SD = 0.84), suggesting a potential correlation between their academic focus and attitudes toward household waste management (Tavill, 2020). Additionally, the amount of food wasted per day showed a significant difference among participants with different fields of study (F = 2.39, p = 0.038). Specifically, those in the field of education reported a higher mean in daily food waste (M = 2.17, SD = 1.39). This implies that academic disciplines may play a role in shaping individuals’ behaviors and attitudes toward food waste, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions and awareness campaigns within specific educational domains. Accordingly, an Australian study proved that of household food waste was significantly affected by leftover reuse skills, dining-out and ordering food online behaviors, methods of food storage and preservation, thus Ananda et al., 2021 emphasis the importance of daily control on household daily food practices to reduce food loss. Most importantly, the contradiction with previous studies if any do not arise from differences in methodology or design of the studies, but it can be attributed to country-specific or cultural factors affecting the attitude toward reducing food waste, since culture influences food waste through dietary habits, food preparation practices, and social norms. Different traditions and food preferences can lead to varying levels of waste, with cultures favoring large feasts or multiple-course meals often generating more waste. Additionally, cultural attitudes toward food, including the value placed on leftovers and the stigma associated with wasting food, shape behaviors around consumption and disposal. These cultural factors collectively determine how much food is wasted in different societies. Accordingly to Obuobi and his colleagues, declared that personal norm influences food waste reduction intention positively (Obuobi et al., 2024).