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This paper aims to review existing literature in the discipline of food hospitality with specific emphasis on the interaction between food safety management, food safety management systems (FSMS) and food safety culture. It is the first paper in a theme issue of Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, discussing the importance of measuring food safety and quality culture.

This paper examines academic literature on FSMS and food safety culture and emerging tools and methods being used to determine their efficacy.

FSMS provide a framework for determining the resources required and the procedures and protocols, monitoring and verification necessary to deliver safe food. However, a performance gap has been identified in the literature between intended and actual food safety practice. The factors, rituals and behaviours that mediate this divide have been termed by many as “food safety culture”. It has been shown that food safety knowledge does not necessarily lead to behaviour that promotes food safety. Thus, the knowledge–experience–attitude–behaviour dynamic of food safety culture is of crucial importance and worthy of further empirical study in the hospitality industry.

The paper will be of value to practitioners, researchers and other stakeholders involved in the hospitality industry.

The purpose of this paper is to critique the existing and emerging alternative approaches being used by regulators and industry to verify the presence and efficacy of food safety management systems (FSMS). It is the second paper in a theme issue of Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, discussing the importance of measuring food safety and quality culture.

This paper, primarily focused on UK examples, examines academic and grey literature to consider the options for effective verification of FSMS with emphasis on the hospitality sector including the use of triangulation.

Third-party certification (TPC) compliance audits alone will not deliver effective verification of the FSMS and the cultural context of how formal systems are implemented, monitored and internally verified. Triangulation needs to be undertaken during the FSMS verification process which at its simplest is a Question, Observe, Measure (QOM) triad and at its more complex involves TPC compliance audits and performance assessment using data analysis methodology and product and environmental testing.

The paper will be of value to practitioners, researchers and other stakeholders involved in the hospitality industry.

This research aims to explore retail managers' views on how food waste (FW) management activities contribute to sustainable value creation and how the customer value proposition (CVP) for a given food retailer interacts with their approaches to FW management.

A three-stage exploratory qualitative approach to data collection and analysis was adopted, involving in-depth interviews with retail managers, documentary analysis of multiple years of relevant corporate reports and email validation by seven major UK grocery retailers. Thematic content analysis supplemented by word similarity cluster analysis, two-step cluster analysis and crisp-set qualitative comparative analysis was undertaken.

FW management practices have been seen by retail managers to contribute to all forms of sustainable value creation, as waste reduction minimises environmental impact, saves costs and/or serves social needs, whilst economic value creation lies at the heart of retail FW management. However, retail operations are also framed by CVP and size of a retailer that enable or inhibit the adoption of certain FW management practices. Low-price retailers were more likely to adopt practices enabling them to save costs. Complicated cost-incurring solutions to FW were more likely to be adopted by retailers associated with larger size, high quality and a range of services.

This study is the first of its kind to empirically explore retail managers' perception of sustainable value creation through FW management activities and to provide empirical evidence of the linkages between retail CVP and sustainable value creation in the context of retail FW management.

Since the end of the latest rice-pledging scheme, Thai rice farmers have had more freedom in selecting marketing channels. Understanding the determinants of farmers' decision-making associated with these channels is of particular interest to multiple stakeholders in the rice value chain. This study aims to examine how economic, relational and psychological factors concurrently underpin Thai rice farmers' decision-making and influence their marketing channel choice.

Drawing on the theory of reasoned action and utility maximization of farmers’ decision making, this study used structural equation modeling to examine data collected from a nationwide sample of Thai rice farmers (n = 637), focusing on their past and intentional use of the three major marketing channels for paddy rice.

The determinants identified include four direct independent variables: attitude, subjective norm (social referents), transaction conditions and economic goals, and two indirect independent variables: past behavior and trust. Multi-group analysis suggests that rice co-operative users were more empowered to consider economic goals and attitude toward the channel, whilst rice miller and local collector users were more likely to be influenced by their social referents and the transaction conditions offered by the channel.

The findings highlight the need for policy to address trust and transparency issues with intermediaries and to empower farmers through the improvement of market access.

The study makes a unique and substantive contribution to the knowledge of farmers' decision-making about marketing channel choice in Thailand and theoretically contributes to the indirect role of past behavior in predicting prospective intention.

The purpose of this paper is to consider the factors that influence food plate waste in a UK university food service setting and the insinuated intention to waste food among staff and students.

The study conducted empirical research using an online questionnaire (n=260) at the university. The data were analysed descriptively and inferentially by IBM SPSS Statistics version 22.

Multiple factors influence the level of food plate waste including gender, different categories of food, plate size, portion size and palatability. Two recommendations to reduce plate food waste in the university food service setting include providing a variation in plate size and pricing strategy by portion rather than a whole meal, and communicating with staff and students in the food service setting.

The research contributes, along with previous studies, by focussing here on participants’ food waste intention in food service settings and evidencing the factors of influence.

The research contributes to understanding on participants’ food waste intention in food service settings.

The purpose of this paper is to undertake a two-phase desktop review of literature sources in order to conceptualise, frame, and critique existing whistleblowing models and strategies and consider how whistleblowing strategies form part of an effective food crime management system (FCMS) especially for small and medium sized organisations.

Existing literature from academic sources, financial, healthcare, food industries has been reviewed and critiqued in order to construct a conceptual framework that can inform future empirical research.

Whistleblowing strategies can form an effective part of a FCMS. Appropriate regulatory protection of those who whistleblow is crucial to not only safeguard individuals but also to mitigate food crime and protect consumers from loss and potential harm. Barriers to whistleblowing exist and if these are not addressed then individuals will be reluctant to report food crime. Further empirical research is required to assess the influence of these and other factors identified in this research and how they can be overcome.

The framework will provide food industry practitioners with guidance on the effective application of whistleblowing strategies within a FCMS.

Global demand for organic milk products gives an opportunity to Polish organic farmers and dairies to supply national, European Union and international milk markets. The purpose of this paper is to review the historic and contemporary changes in organic milk production and processing in Poland, in order to identify the main factors of influence and to propose the direction of future market and policy development in the sector.

In this study, secondary data from a range of literature sources and databases are analysed. The Lorenz’s concentration ratio is applied to the data derived to evaluate the degree of concentration of certified organic farms in the different regions of Poland and conclusions are drawn as a result.

Organic dairy farm operations in Poland are small scale and territorially dispersed. Although there is some evidence of growing supply concentration, Polish processors of organic milk face multiple barriers to development not least a lack of continuity of supplies. Whilst global markets are of interest, the development of alternative, innovative food networks in Poland that focus on provenance, integrity and promoting the special health benefits of organic milk would be of value to the sector, but further cooperation and integration is essential to take advantage of these market opportunities.

This research underpins the need for appropriate national policies in Poland for the development and actualisation of a dynamic organic milk supply system that delivers value to local, regional and international markets.

We conducted a systematic review to explore the potential for the application of blockchain technologies for supply chain resilience in a small-scale agri-food business context.

As part of the research methodology, scientific databases such as Web of Science, Google Scholar and Scopus were used to find relevant articles for this review.

The systematic review of articles (n = 57) found that the use of blockchain technology in the small-scale agri-food business sector can reduce the risk of food fraud by assuring the provenance of food products.

Only a few papers were directly from a small-scale agribusiness context. Key challenges that limit the implementation of blockchain and other distributed ledger technologies include concerns over the disclosure of proprietary information and trade secrets, incomplete or inaccurate information, economic and technical difficulties, low levels of trust in the technology, risk of human error and poor governance of process-related issues.

The application of blockchain technology ensures that the risks and costs associated with non-compliance, product recalls and product loss are reduced. Improved communication and information sharing can increase resilience and better support provenance claims and traceability. Better customer relationships can be built, increasing supply chain efficiency and resilience.

The purpose of this paper is to identify mechanisms for using a quantitative benchmarking approach to drive sustainability improvements in the food supply chain.

A literature review was undertaken and then a strategic and operational framework developed for improving food supply chain sustainability in terms of triple bottom line criteria.

Using a sustainability indicator scoring approach, the paper considers the architecture for analysis so that strategic goals can be clearly formulated and cascade into specific, relevant and timebound strategic and operational measures that underpin brand value and product integrity.

This paper is of value to academics and also practitioners in the food industry.