Picture it: you arrive at your Airbnb, Vrbo—whatever you want to call your short-term vacation rental—what’s one of the first things you want to do? If there’s a pool, maybe you want to jump in that. But more than likely you’re looking to fill that fridge with some beverages and snacks.
Do you consume all of it before your vacay ends? According to a new study, probably not. And the food waste that U.S. vacationers create is estimated to total $2 billion per year.
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Yikes, right?
The study was recently published in the journal Waste Management, finding that between groceries, takeout and restaurant leftovers, approximately $12 in value per night remains uneaten, left in short-term rental fridges.
Another staggering statistic? Researchers believe that, again on average, the value of wasted food per getaway equals about 5.1% of the nightly accommodations rental fee.
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Something that will come as no surprise to parents, the amount of food waste increases depending on the number of kids staying in that particular rental, as well as with the unit’s rental price.
Researchers also noted that “more (food) is wasted during January through March and among travelers 25 years and younger.”
The study data was collected from an online survey of 502 travelers in the U.S..
But there is some hope in shrinking this amount of food waste in the future. While only 21% of respondents said their rental hosts gave them information about what to do with uneaten food, others said they would appreciate information about how and where to either donate or compost the goods prior to leaving. So maybe the next time you find yourself in a vacation rental, a few tips and tricks regarding food waste will be added to the manual.
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