Active · 90 Million VND
From Meal to Waste: A Media Discourse Analysis of Urban Food Waste in Vietnam
According to the Food Waste Index Report, household food waste in Vietnam in 2022 was estimated at around 72 kg/person/year, close to the global average of 79 kg (UNEP, 2024). This figure is higher than that of several developed countries in Asia-Pacific region, such as Japan, Singapore, and New Zealand. In total, Vietnam waste nearly 9 million tons of food annually, equivalent to almost 2% of its GDP (Ngan et al., 2024). Media discourse can play an important role in shaping public perception. In Vietnam, cultural practices and modern lifestyles are tied to food abundance. Yet, limited research examines how Vietnamese news media construct food waste as a public problem in relations to cultural event and everyday practices. This project addresses that gap through a discourse analysis of approximately 100 Vietnamese articles on mass media outlets (e.g., VnExpress, Tuoi Tre) between 2015-2025.