Why Grocery Stores Waste So Much Food (And Why They Still Do It)

Описание: Every day, American grocery stores discard 123 million pounds of perfectly good food—that's 43 billion pounds annually, enough to feed millions while people go hungry. If you've ever wondered why produce sections look flawlessly stocked with identical apples and perfectly yellow bananas, even at closing time, you're witnessing a carefully orchestrated system of waste. This isn't about spoiled food or broken refrigerators; it's about a retail model that has intentionally built waste into its core operations, where discarding nearly a third of all food isn't an accident—it's by design.

Despite operating on razor-thin profit margins of just 1-3%, grocery stores continue this wasteful practice because the alternative threatens something more valuable than the discarded food: the illusion of endless abundance that drives consumer behavior. From rejecting "imperfect" produce to removing items approaching arbitrary expiration dates, stores prioritize visual appeal and perceived freshness over actual food quality. This deep dive reveals the hidden economics behind grocery store operations, exploring why this wasteful system persists, what it costs consumers and society, and why changing it is far more complicated than simply donating excess food to those in need.

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