Using Responsive Food Packaging to Monitor Shelf Life · 95
RESULTS Survey Results A total of 100 responses were gathered for the survey (see Appendix A for a full list of survey questions and results). Of those 100, most individuals were young women. 82 percent of respondents were between the ages of 18 to 29, and 81 percent of them were female. Additionally, 89 percent of those surveyed did not have children under the age of 18. The frequency at which respondents shopped for groceries, however, was more evenly distributed. 40 percent shopped for groceries at least once a week, 27 percent shopped every other week, 14 percent shopped multiple times a week, 10 percent shopped less than once a month, and 9 percent shopped once a month. Survey respondents were also split on how often they threw out food. 50 percent admitted to occasionally throwing away food, 35 percent said they threw food away infrequently, and 13 percent said they threw away food frequently. By far the most common reason (66 percent) for throwing away food was because it had spoiled or gone bad. Other respondents said that they threw food away because they had forgotten about it or didn’t finish it. 2 percent of respondents indicated that they threw away food for a combination of the reasons provided. When asked, 89 percent of respondents said they would be interested in purchasing a food product that utilized a freshness indicator. 75 percent said they would be willing to pay more for a product if it utilized a freshness indicator. Survey data are shown on the next page.