
Food Waste
The Scale of the Food Waste Problem
Food waste is a huge global issue, both economically and environmentally. And unfortunately, it doesn’t look like the food waste problem is getting any smaller.
Shockingly, around a third of all the food produced in the world is lost or wasted. In the UK alone we throw away 7.1 million tonnes of food each year. This is crazy, especially in times of austerity and the rise in the need for food banks. Whilst we’re wasting all this food, there are millions of people struggling to afford to feed their families.
But it’s not just the food that gets wasted. The water, land, energy and labour that goes into producing and transporting the food is also wasted. Given the earth’s resources are limited, we can’t afford to just throw food away.
We’re facing an impending climate crisis, and this is in part due to wasteful behaviour.
Take a look at the facts.

1.3 billion tonnes
The amount of food produced for human consumption that gets wasted across the globe EVERY YEAR.
24 million slices
We waste 24 million slices of bread every single day in the UK.
£450 per year
The amount of food thrown away each year by the average UK family.
250,000 tonnes
Of the 1.3 billion tonnes of food waste, 250k tonnes in the UK alone are still edible.
8.4 million people
The number of people in the UK who are struggling to afford to eat.
10x worse
Food waste has at least ten times the environmental impact of packaging waste.
These stats aren’t here to shock or make you feel bad. We all buy too much food or let it go bad. These stats are here to get you thinking about your own habits.
How much is your household doing to minimise food waste?
Is your bin a reflection of the growing food waste problem?
Why so Much Food Waste?
Food often travels a long way to make it from the field to our plates. Some level of food is lost or wasted in several different ways at each stage of that journey.
Climate change, availability of resources and our wallets are all negatively affected by the rise in global food waste. But thankfully, we all have the ability to make small changes to make sure that we’re not personally contributing as much to the problem.
And with small changes, comes big power!
Ways to Reduce Food Waste at Home
We can all take action to prevent so much food from going to waste. We don’t have to become food waste activists – instead, there are plenty of small steps we can take. Collectively these will make a huge difference to the global food waste issue.
Take action today and make a difference to the food waste problem:
- Understand the difference between ‘use by’ and ‘best before’ dates
- Only buy the food you need when you go shopping with proper meal planning
- Use up leftovers to make new meals
- Build a compost bin in your garden
- Use apps and gadgets to help use food before it becomes waste
- Invest in storage solutions that keep food fresher for longer
- Use your freezer to store food before it goes off
- Learn how fermentation can save food

Food Waste Heros
There are some amazing people, brands and businesses working to reduce food waste. We love celebrating their stories!
Do you know a food waste hero with a great story? If so, leave us a suggestion here.

Food Waste Recipes
If you’re on the lookout for ways to save food from going to waste at home, here’s some recipes for inspiration:
Do you have a favourite food waste recipe you’d like to share with us? We’d love to include it here, so please let us know.
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