Encouraging consumers to consume food more sustainably and avoiding food waste have been identified as important levers for mitigating the effects of climate change in relation to food systems. However, a comprehensive meta-analysis of 110 studies with over 2.4 million observations shows that the average effects of such measures are rather small overall. There are significant differences between the types of intervention: choice architecture measures, such as default settings, contribute significantly to the observed effect, while incentives show potential, particularly in the area of waste reduction. After correcting for publication bias, many effect sizes are relativised, but individual structural interventions remain robust. The results illustrate that behaviour-based measures need to be researched in a more context-sensitive manner in order to increase their effectiveness in a targeted manner.
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