In the United States, food insecurity has been a hot-button issue recently, prompting increased scrutiny of needless food waste.
A post on Reddit's r/Anticonsumption, a subreddit for "criticizing and discussing consumer culture" excesses, exemplified why business-level food waste is so frustrating to witness.
What's happening?
"I work at a hockey stadium pizza stand," the post's title began.
Just underneath it, one photograph showed a translucent green bag full of perfectly good pizza.
According to the original poster, excessive food waste wasn't necessarily a nightly occurrence — but they'd seen it happen far too often.
"On the busy days hardly to no food is wasted," they explained, adding that on the night they took the photograph, only nine pizzas had been sold to a crowd of 2,000.
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As is often the case with retail food waste, the employee was prohibited from consuming or donating the unsold food.
"And the picture above shows the pizzas we couldn't sell, but can't eat either (cuz that would be stealing apparently)," they continued. "I just don't understand why we can't at least give it to homeless shelters or something cuz this is just cruel."
Commenters were understandably horrified and agreed.
"Why can't employees just take it home at the end of the day for themselves and their families?!? I've never worked in the food industry, but this nonsense just kills me," a top comment read.
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Heck yes 👍 "Capitalism," another commenter replied.
Why is concession stand food waste important?
Food waste is such a frequent topic on r/Anticonsumption that it warrants its own category.
When large chains engage in flagrant, seemingly avoidable food waste, consumers can make their voices heard and object.
Food service concession stands and kiosks are less recognizable, and it's harder to hold them accountable. Moreover, the problem of food waste goes well beyond sustenance that could otherwise go to Americans in need.
Globally, one-third of all food goes uneaten after passing through the supply chain and generating pollution.
It gets worse: According to the Environmental Protection Agency, food waste accounts for nearly a quarter of all solid municipal waste in the U.S. It's also responsible for an estimated 58% of planet-warming methane emitted from landfills.
Are food service concessions doing anything about this?
Stadiums vary greatly in their operational practices, and concessions are often managed by third-party vendors.
Consequently, quantifying stadium-based food waste can be tricky — but it's not impossible.
In 2023, the New York Times covered food waste reduction efforts at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The stadium produced an immense four million pounds of waste each year.
Amid efforts to neutralize its environmental impact, the facility introduced measures like composting.
Crucially, the stadium "pushed vendors" to transition to eco-friendly packaging and minimize concession food waste.
Similar efforts were enacted for the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, which addressed all levels of food waste.
What's being done about food waste more broadly?
Food waste can be logistically challenging to avoid, and food must be deemed safe to consume before it's donated.
However, big retailers have managed massive, last-minute donations after equipment failures. They prove that avoiding food waste is feasible even on short notice.
One former food service worker chimed in on Reddit, calling the image "just bad food management."
"Staff and management just have to try to make food waste a focus and also come up with a strategy to manage leftover food," they explained. "Contact homeless shelters and see if leftover food can be picked up etc."
"It's doable," they concluded. "Someone just has to do it."
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