Food Waste and the Environment

We are an unbelievably wasteful nation....

The national Love Food Hate Waste campaign has come up with some startling facts...

Nearly one quarter of the 4.1 million tonnes of avoidable food waste is thrown away whole, untouched or unopened. Of this, at least 340,000 tonnes is still in date when thrown away. A further 1.2 million tonnes is simply left on our plates. 

Every day in the UK we throw away:

• 5.1 million whole potatoes
• 4.4 million whole apples
• 2.8 million whole tomatoes
• 7 million whole slices of bread
• 1.3 million unopened yoghurts and yoghurt drinks
• 1.2 million sausages
• 1 million slices of ham
• 0.7 million whole eggs
• 0.7 million whole bars of chocolate and unwrapped sweets
• 0.3 million unopened packets of crisps

And this waste is bad for the environment and a waste of our money....

In the UK we spend £10.2 billion every year buying and then throwing away good food. That works out at £420 for the average UK household. And for households with children it’s even more - £610 a year.

Another £1 billion is then spent collecting our food waste and sending most of it to landfill.

Imagine getting home from the supermarket with three bags of shopping, and immediately putting one of them into the bin. This is essentially what happens every day in homes across the UK.

The Impact on the Environment...

Food waste is also harmful to the environment. This avoidable food waste is responsible for millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide and methane gases produced when this food rots in landfill sites across the UK.  In addition to this, just think about all the energy used in food production, packaging, transportation and storage. This all goes to waste when we throw away perfectly good food.  If we stopped wasting food which could have been eaten, it would have the same impact on carbon emissions as taking 1 in 5 cars off UK roads. 

Food waste is an enormous challenge since most of us don’t realise just how much we produce. We need to start thinking about it to reduce waste, save money and minimise our impact on the environment.

Helpful hints and tips

Being clever in the kitchen and savvy at the supermarket can save you money! Here are a few tips to ensure that you make the most of your food:

• Your freezer really is your kitchen hero – many fresh foods (including fruit and vegetables) can be frozen: check the label.
• Have a quick check in the fridge each day and plan meals around what needs using up first.
• If things are approaching their 'Use By' date and you're not going to get round to eating them - pop them in the freezer for another day.
• Those leftovers from last night’s dinner can make a great lunchbox to take to work. 
• To avoid bread going stale, put it in the freezer.

For more information and hints and tips about reducing your food waste visit www.lovefoodhatewaste.com