The numbers say that the habit of throwing food is slowly receding in Italian homes. According to data from the “Case Italia 2026” report, edited by the Waste Watcher International Observatory, each citizen of the Peninsula throws away on average 554 grams of food per week. This is a marked improvement compared to the 617.9 grams recorded in February 2025, marking a contraction of 10.3%.
Despite statistical progress, the economic dimension of the phenomenon remains impressive. The overall waste supply chain, which includes production, distribution and industry, is close to 13.5 billion euros. Of these, the largest share – around 7.3 billion – accrues within family units. Even though the daily amount per capita has dropped to 79 grams, the total volume of food ending up in landfill exceeds 5 million tons.
The primacy of the Boomers and the anxiety of Generation Z
The report highlights a clear divide based on registry. The Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964) confirm themselves as the most virtuous: with 352 grams of weekly waste, they have already met the UN Agenda 2030 exam four years early. At the opposite pole is Generation Z (1997-2012), which records a waste of 799 grams per week, followed by the Millennials with 750 grams.
The reasons for this discrepancy do not lie so much in the lack of environmental and economic sensitivity, but in practical skills. If 88% of Italians declare that they dedicate themselves to preparing meals every day, the younger ones suffer from “organizational fragility”. 49% of Gen Z kids admit to forgetting food in the fridge until it expires, compared to 21% of Boomers. Even the ability to reuse leftovers is slow: only 49% of very young people freeze what remains from the meal, a practice that is instead customary for 64% of the older generation.
Andrea Segrè, scientific director of the Observatory and founder of the National Day, underlined how the solution does not lie in conflict, but in a new alliance: “Boomers today are the locomotive of prevention: over time they have internalized care, food management and reuse skills. Generation Z possesses a decisive capital: the mastery of digital tools and the willingness to change. Only by encouraging this exchange can we truly halve food waste within the next four years”.
The geography of waste
The waste map partly reflects the country’s historical gaps. Less is wasted in the North (516 grams) and more in the South, where the figure rises to 591.2 grams (+7%), while the Center stands at 570.8 grams. An interesting fact concerns the size of the population centres: municipalities with up to 30 thousand inhabitants are more attentive than large metropolises.
In the hierarchy of the most sacrificed products, fruit (22.2 g), vegetables (20.6 g) and bread (19.6 g) stand out. Salads and tubers follow. The main reasons remain linked to poor household management: incorrect storage accounts for 38%, forgetfulness for 33% and over-purchasing for 28%. This last factor is critical for young people (38%), driven by a sense of food insecurity which in 2026 saw an increase in the specific index, reaching 14.36.
The cultural turning point outside the home
While there is still a long way to go within the home, restaurants seem to have become laboratories of new habits. Thanks to the synergy with Confcommercio and Fipe, monitoring highlights that 8 out of 10 Italians no longer waste at restaurants: they either consume everything or take the leftovers home. The “doggy bag” has become a habit that takes root, day after day, more and more: 93% of customers receive the container from the dining room staff and no longer feel ashamed in asking for it. A sign that, at least outside the home, the fight against waste has become a shared social value.
