Our reporter Wang Moling and Yang Youzong
In order to reject the "waste on the tip of the tongue" and advocate the new fashion of strict economy, several major takeaway platforms have responded. "Half meals", "small portions" and "one-person food" have become "fashionable new dishes" for takeaway catering businesses for a while . But can the "slimming" takeaway dishes stop the waste? What are the "blind spots" that are easily overlooked in takeaway waste? This reporter launched an investigation.
Can "slimming" takeaways stop waste?
During lunch break on weekdays, at the entrance of an office building in Shanghai, Shanghai white-collar Xiao Xu walked to the trash can of the office building with a bag of take-out garbage. The reporter saw that there was still about a quarter of the dishes and one third of the rice in the lunch box.
"Our company does not have a canteen, and the small restaurants around are tired of eating, so we order takeaways almost every day." Xiao Xu said, "It is not uncommon for people with a small appetite to eat alone. There are too many staple foods, and even if the dishes don’t suit the taste, you can’t finish them even if they are few.
Different from dine-in, it is difficult for consumers to make accurate judgments about the weight and taste of the meal when ordering takeout. However, reporters have also seen that on the take-out platform, many businesses have begun to launch single-person meals and indicate the weight information of meals. Large "hard dishes" such as pickled fish and beef stew have also begun to have smaller versions.
"Although the'slimming' takeaway set meal is good, it has limitations." Netizen "Zhusha" said that the restaurant has launched a single takeaway set meal, but the dishes in the set meal are often fixed. "It is still not like a cafeteria, which can match dishes at will. It’s so convenient to tell the cafeteria chef that there is less rice and only one chicken wing. For office workers, it’s not easy to deal with leftovers at the company and can only be discarded."
For take-out merchants, there is a certain degree of difficulty in taking care of the personalized needs of each customer due to the large number of orders during the peak dining period and the tight delivery time. Manager Wu, the person in charge of a crab rice restaurant in Shanghai, said that restaurants and takeaway platforms can’t contact every customer. Some customers have big appetites and some have small appetites, so “we can only order a moderate portion”.
Difficult to "adjust" a small portion, and a full reduction causes "more points"
The big data of Meituan Waimai shows that since August this year, the sales volume of "small portions" has increased by about 30% compared with July. While the takeaway "slimming" has a positive effect on saving food, many consumers still report that "there is actually room for improvement."
——Can the "moderate weight" of the merchant become the "adjustable variable"? During the interview, the reporter found that the "difficult to adjust" problem of the portion size of the dishes is more prominent. Merchants do not set small portions for each dish out of cost considerations. Some consumers say that although the "one-person" set meal is not wasteful, it also sacrifices the opportunity to try other dishes. Changing the taste occasionally may cause waste. Wang Chunfang, a white-collar worker in Shanghai, believes that many dishes can offer a variety of flavors when ordering food online. "But why can't we provide adjustable options like rice and dishes such as 50% or 70%?"
——How can the platform's "full discounts" not become the promoter of "passive waste"? In the take-out platform, each restaurant will mark the "full discount" message in red. On a Hong Kong-style food delivery platform, the reporter saw a discount activity of "6 yuan for 26 yuan, 11 yuan for 46 yuan, 15 yuan for 68 yuan." Some netizens reported on social platforms: "Sometimes there is a difference of one or two yuan to the full reduction. In order to get the discount, they will order one more steamed bun or snack, but one meal is definitely not enough, and the next meal may not be able to Get up and eat it hot.” Whether the preferential activities are intended to deliver benefits and promote marketing or stimulate “forced waste”, this balance may require platforms and businesses to exercise more caution.
——Who will supervise consumers' "wasteful behavior" online? “I found that although take-out meals are labeled with weight in grams, it is still difficult for consumers to translate it into an accurate perception of their own food intake.” Said Ai Siying, a college student who often orders on take-out platforms, “Dine-in is always There is a waiter who can help you check the portion size, but the takeaway lacks reminders and supervision. I think you can ask consumers to fill in the number of meals before ordering. The platform can help evaluate whether the order is overweight before paying, and remind you in time to reduce waste."
Eliminating waste of takeaway needs "different from person to person"
Many consumers also said in interviews that eliminating waste in takeaways may need to be "different from person to person". "Students and dishes should be given more portions to choose from, to satisfy both the'big appetite' and the'small appetite'. The'one-person food' should be suitable for everyone." It’s not easy to waste because you like to eat." "Compared to full discounts, long-term ordering of moderate meals can also be incentivized"...
"The platform needs to meet the needs of consumers while complying with the business needs of the merchants." Han Shuo, the person in charge of the Meituan-to-store catering merchant platform, said that in the future, the dining scene will be further complemented to make the package grading more refined.
Han Shuo also said that the platform will also pay more attention to interaction, increase consumer feedback on the package, and make algorithmic recommendations based on their feedback and evaluation data to help businesses better understand consumers, adjust the menu items, and more Prepare dishes accurately, estimate the demand for dishes, and reduce waste when stocking up.
Some consumers expressed that they hope that platforms and merchants can check the reasonableness of food portions and pricing, and that prices should match the amount of vegetables. "If the amount is small but the price is high, it will ultimately harm the interests of consumers and it is not conducive to eliminating waste. Sustainability of action.” (Interns Wu Yuchen, Yao Zixuan and Sun Yiran participated in the writing)