Empirical research is required to identify psychological and psychographic factors which can activate or amplify norms of foodservice customers towards food waste reduction. By surveying 446 foodservice customers in Poland, a country with a large population of religion followers, this study examines the influence of religious values on personal norms and explores the moderating effect of social distance on injunctive norms. The results indicate that religious values do not activate personal norms directly but affect them indirectly via such mediating factors as the feeling of compassion and family upbringing. Close encounters, such as family and friends, amplify the effect of injunctive norms while distant encounters, such as fellow countrymen, do not. This suggests that measures for food waste reduction should be designed to appeal to the foodservice customers' feeling of compassion. The measures should also remind foodservice customers that their (grand)parents and friends would disprove food waste. Display omitted •Religious values affect personal norms of foodservice customers indirectly.•The feeling of compassion and family upbringing mediate the effect of religious values.•The feeling of respect for farmers’ work exerts no influence on personal norms.•Close encounters amplify the effect of injunctive norms on food waste reduction intention.•Food waste reduction campaigns should appeal to compassion and family upbringing.