Althumiri Nora A, Basyouni Mada H, Duhaim Ali F, AlMousa Norah, AlJuwaysim Mohammed F, BinDhim Nasser F
Sharik Association for Health Research, Riyadh 13326, Saudi Arabia.
Ministry of Health, Riyadh 11176, Saudi Arabia.
Foods. 2021 Mar 23;10(3):681. doi: 10.3390/foods10030681.
Food waste and food insecurity may co-exist in various balances in developing and developed countries. This study aimed to explore the levels of food waste and food insecurity, the factors associated with them, and their relationships at the household and individual levels in Saudi Arabia.
This study was a nationwide cross-sectional survey conducted via computer-assisted phone interviews in January 2021. Quota sampling was utilized to generate balanced distributions of participants by gender across all the administrative regions of Saudi Arabia. Data collection included household demographics, food waste and disposal, the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), and the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS).
Out of the 2807 potential participants contacted, 2454 (87.4%) completed the interview. The mean age was 31.4 (SD = 11.7; range = 18-99) and 50.1% were female. The weighted prevalence of uncooked food waste in the last four weeks was 63.6% and the cooked food waste was 74.4%. However, the food insecurity weighted prevalence at the individual level (FIES) was 6.8%. In terms of food insecurity at the household level (HFIAS), 13.3% were in the "severely food insecure" category. Moreover, this study found that "moderately food insecure" households were associated with an increased likelihood to waste uncooked food (relative risk (RR) = 1.25), and the "mildly food insecure" (RR = 1.21) and "moderately food insecure" (RR = 1.17) households were associated with an increased likelihood to waste cooked food. However, "food secure" households were associated with a decreased likelihood to waste cooked food (RR = 0.56). Finally, this study identified four household factors associated with food waste and three household factors that were associated with "severe food insecurity."
This first national coverage study to explore food waste and food insecurity at the individual level and household level, identified household factors associated with food waste and food insecurity and identified new associations between food waste and food insecurity in Saudi Arabia. The associations found between food waste and food insecurity are potential areas of intervention to reduce both food waste and food insecurity at the same time, toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets related to food waste and food security.
在发展中国家和发达国家，食物浪费和粮食不安全可能以各种不同的平衡状态并存。本研究旨在探讨沙特阿拉伯家庭和个人层面的食物浪费及粮食不安全程度、与之相关的因素及其关系。
本研究是一项于2021年1月通过计算机辅助电话访谈进行的全国性横断面调查。采用配额抽样以确保沙特阿拉伯所有行政区的参与者在性别上分布均衡。数据收集包括家庭人口统计学、食物浪费及处理情况、粮食不安全经历量表（FIES）以及家庭粮食不安全获取量表（HFIAS）。
在联系的2807名潜在参与者中，2454人（87.4%）完成了访谈。平均年龄为31.4岁（标准差=11.7；范围=18 - 99岁），女性占50.1%。过去四周未烹饪食物浪费的加权患病率为63.6%，烹饪食物浪费的加权患病率为74.4%。然而，个人层面粮食不安全（FIES）的加权患病率为6.8%。在家庭层面粮食不安全（HFIAS）方面，13.3%属于“严重粮食不安全”类别。此外，本研究发现“中度粮食不安全”家庭浪费未烹饪食物的可能性增加（相对风险（RR）=1.25），“轻度粮食不安全”家庭（RR = 1.21）和“中度粮食不安全”家庭（RR = 1.17）浪费烹饪食物的可能性增加。然而，“粮食安全”家庭浪费烹饪食物的可能性降低（RR = 0.56）。最后，本研究确定了与食物浪费相关的四个家庭因素以及与“严重粮食不安全”相关的三个家庭因素。
这项首次在全国范围内开展的研究，在个人层面和家庭层面探讨了食物浪费和粮食不安全问题，确定了与食物浪费和粮食不安全相关的家庭因素，并发现了沙特阿拉伯食物浪费与粮食不安全之间的新关联。食物浪费与粮食不安全之间的这些关联是潜在的干预领域，可同时减少食物浪费和粮食不安全，以实现与食物浪费和粮食安全相关的可持续发展目标（SDG）指标。
