Last October, EXCEL4MED was present at the Farmers’ Market organised by the University of Malta student group, bringing sustainability, circular economy, and citrus innovation closer to the student community.

Represented by Koperattivi Malta, the project engaged students and visitors through a simple but meaningful outreach activity focused on citrus and citrus waste. Free citrus was distributed during the event, creating an accessible way to start conversations about local produce.

As part of the interactive stand, visitors were also invited to take part in a short quiz on citrus and citrus waste, accessible through a QR code. The quiz collected 34 responses, offering useful insight into participants’ awareness and everyday challenges around food waste. Respondents had an average age of 24.2 years, with ages ranging from 18 to 51, and a median age of 22.

One of the clearest findings was that overbuying food was identified as the biggest contributor to household food waste by 31 out of 34 respondents, representing approximately 91% of all answers. Only 3 respondents, or around 9%, selected expired packaging.

When asked about the main challenge they face in reducing food waste, common answers included food expiring before being used, cooking or preparing too much food, overbuying, lack of planning, and not knowing how to reuse leftovers or by-products. These responses show that food waste is not only linked to awareness but also to daily habits, time constraints, storage, and meal planning.

 

This activity now also provides a small statistical research snapshot. However, respondents were not selected through a predetermined sampling method; rather, responses were gathered through random participation from people attending the Farmers’ Market.

If you want to learn more about how you can reduce food waste, check out this article -> https://cooperatives-malta.coop/press/excel4med-practical-tips-for-reducing-food-waste-in-malta-for-everyday-life/

 

You can participate in this interactive form by scanning the QR Code below:

This article is a part series of the EXCEL4MED project, funded by the Horizon Europe programme, which aims to boost innovation in the agri-food sector across Malta, Greece, and France. With its website now fully available in French, Italian, Spanish, and English, more stakeholders, including researchers, producers, policymakers, and consumers, can engage with the project in the language they feel most comfortable with. Read more on: https://excel4med.eu/.

 

Koperattivi Malta is proud to support this initiative in collaboration with

@EXCEL4MED @MaltaFoodAgency @MaltaEnterprise @TheMaltaChamber @UniversityofMalta @SmartAgroHub