Now woke scientists say we should label bananas as 'sad' to slash food waste
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With more than 1 billion meals thrown in the bin globally each day, there's no doubt society needs new ways to cut food waste. Now, scientists say they might have an answer – giving food products 'sad' labels to help us empathise with them. Cartoons of sad-looking bananas boost sales of the fruit when they're not in bunches, according to new experiments conducted in German supermarkets.
![[In the shop, single bananas were given one of three signs - 'happy singles', 'sad singles' and 'no emotion']](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/03/15/92744795-14152671-image-a-13_1733238199507.jpg)
When people go to buy bananas, most are inclined to grab a bunch rather than several single bananas, according to the researchers. This picky consumer preference means single bananas are overlooked, tend to go black and are chucked away, contributing to the food waste problem.
![[Faced with a pile of loose, unsold single bananas, retailers can motivate customers to buy overlooked fruit by giving it emotional appeal]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/03/15/92747247-14152671-image-a-20_1733240629103.jpg)
The research suggests we feel sorry for food when it's threatened with being thrown in the bin, but this can be alleviated by giving it a 'good home' – our stomachs. 'The need to belong is one of the most basic human motivations,' said study author Dr Lisa Eckmann at the University of Bath's retail lab.
![[Further experiments conducted online showed people felt more inclined to purchase 'sad' tomatoes rather than 'happy' tomatoes. Unlike with the bananas, this was not tested in real-life supermarkets]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/03/17/92751023-14152671-image-a-24_1733245561805.jpg)
'Applying sadness to single, stray bananas evokes a compassionate response from shoppers.'. Pictured, 'sad' banana signs are placed above single bananas in an attempt to get shoppers to buy the fruit at a store in Germany. Translated from German, the banana sign says: 'We are sad singles and would like to be bought too'.
According to the UN, the world wastes 1.05 billion tonnes of food per year – a figure expected to double by 2030 – and households across all continents waste over 1 billion meals a day. This is a huge environmental problem because when food leftovers rot, they release methane, a powerful greenhouse gas that causes global warming.
