{"id":5341,"date":"2021-11-02T17:15:19","date_gmt":"2021-11-03T00:15:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/?p=5341"},"modified":"2024-10-24T12:47:55","modified_gmt":"2024-10-24T19:47:55","slug":"unpacking-unpackaged-food-podcast-on-modern-consumption-of-bulk-foods","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/2021\/11\/02\/unpacking-unpackaged-food-podcast-on-modern-consumption-of-bulk-foods\/","title":{"rendered":"Unpacking Unpackaged Food: Podcast on Modern Consumption of Bulk Foods"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Image sourced from the Today Show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you shop in bulk? Which foods do you buy in bulk? Why? The bulk foods aisle can be an unassuming section of the grocery store, but there is plenty to unpack when discussing these unpackaged grocery wares. \u201cBuying in bulk\u201d originated within the 1970\u2019s co-op movement but has since been co-opted by major supermarket chains. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At its best, the bulk aisle is a place for consumers to access food products at a reduced price, without the added value of brand-names, packaging, and extraneous supply chain costs. The original ideologies promoted by bulk foods have persisted, but a growing concern about plastic waste is a primary motivator to consumers interested in buying in bulk. The structuring of the bulk section presents barriers to equal access by all consumers while it simultaneously markets bulk foods as a virtuous alternative, casting the consumer, not the grocer, as the agent responsible for sustainability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How could bulk foods evolve with the competing demands of convenience and variety? The bulk aisle plays a role in the reduction of waste in the food system, but it also holds the potential to be reimagined in creative ways and become a more effective resource for consumers and producers. Classmate Lucy Ogburn and I chat for 20 minutes about the role of bulk foods in grocery stores today: who’s buying them, how much they cost, and where we can go from here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Listen to our podcast: Unpacking Unpackaged Food, Lucy Ogburn and Helen McDonald (Archive, 2021)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n


Bibliography

Audacity Team (2021). Audacity(R): Free Audio Editor and Recorder [Computer application]. Version 3.0.0 retrieved October 27th, 2021, from https:\/\/audacityteam.org\/.

Burnham, Ted. (2012). \u201cOh nuts! Buying Bulk Can Cost More But Saves Packaging.\u201d The Salt, NPR. Retrieved October 26, 2021 from: https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/thesalt\/2012\/04\/03\/149932940\/oh-nuts-buying-bulk-can-cost-more-but-saves-packaging <\/p>\n\n\n\n


ecfike. (n.d.). Grocery Store 2, Checkout. Freesound. Retrieved October 29, 2021, from https:\/\/freesound.org\/people\/ecfike\/sounds\/475704\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Johnson, S. L. (1984). Consumer Attitudes Toward Unpackaged Foods. Journal of Food Distribution Research, 15(1). https:\/\/econpapers.repec.org\/article\/agsjlofdr\/26939.html<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Le Gang. (2021, July 17). Swimming. Audio Library Plus. https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=x-Vf5eL4fWw<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Rapp, A., Marino, A., Simeoni, R., & Cena, F. (2017). An ethnographic study of packaging-free purchasing: Designing an interactive system to support sustainable social practices. Behavior & Information Technology, 36(11), 1193\u20131217. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/0144929X.2017.1365170<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Vann, Karine. (2019). \u201cUS Supermarkets Are Doing Bulk Foods All Wrong.\u201d Civil Eats. Retrieved October 28, 2021, from:
https:\/\/civileats.com\/2019\/10\/28\/us-supermarkets-are-doing-bulk-food-all-wrong\/ <\/p>\n\n\n\n


Vann, Karine. (2020). \u201cTech startups want to reinvent the bulk aisle–grocery\u2019s most glorious, affordable, unwieldy section. That\u2019s going to be harder than it looks.\u201d The Counter. Retrieved October 25, 2021, from: https:\/\/thecounter.org\/modernizing-bulk-grocery-supermarkets-tech-shopping\/ <\/p>\n\n\n\n


Vrane\u0161evic\u00b4, T., & Stancec, R. (2003). The effect of the brand on perceived quality of food products. British Food Journal, 105(11), 811\u2013825. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1108\/00070700310511609
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Image sourced from the Today Show. Do you shop in bulk? Which foods do you buy in bulk? Why? The bulk foods aisle can be an unassuming section of the grocery store, but there is plenty to unpack when discussing these unpackaged grocery wares. \u201cBuying in bulk\u201d originated within the 1970\u2019s co-op movement but has since been co-opted by major supermarket chains. At its best, the bulk aisle is a place for consumers to access food products at a reduced price, without the added value of brand-names, packaging, and extraneous supply chain costs. The original ideologies promoted by bulk foods Continue reading Unpacking Unpackaged Food: Podcast on Modern Consumption of Bulk Foods<\/span>→<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":624,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5341","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-economics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5341","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/624"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5341"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5341\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6116,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5341\/revisions\/6116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.pugetsound.edu\/econ\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}