Minimizing Food Waste at Google: Creating Production Innovation and Purchasing Practices

Abstract

Purpose

This chapter examines the role of stakeholders, cocreation, and pro-environmental behaviors in Google’s efforts to reduce the environmental impact of their food waste. It describes several different strategies that the company undertook and the outcomes of those efforts. These efforts ranged from working with suppliers and employees to use food that was normally wasted to implementing a waste measuring and feedback system. The case highlights the challenges, current impact, and risks of the different strategies.

Methodology/approach

The chapter covers the theories and models of stakeholder influence on sustainability, new product development through cocreation, and pro-environmental behaviors; it applies these concepts to Google’s food waste program.

Findings

The results of the study contribute to the frameworks on cocreation and stakeholder management to include ideas for encouraging pro-environmental behavior through various social practices (measuring and monitoring waste, building supply chain partnerships, and cocreating new products with stakeholders).

Originality/value

The findings of this chapter will help other companies with ideas for successfully reducing food waste and its environmental impact by illustrating new ideas for engaging stakeholders in the supply chain.

Citation

Pullman, M. and Rainey, K. (2016), "Minimizing Food Waste at Google: Creating Production Innovation and Purchasing Practices", Organizing Supply Chain Processes for Sustainable Innovation in the Agri-Food Industry (Organizing for Sustainable Effectiveness, Vol. 5), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 127-152. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2045-060520160000005014