 The cost of needlessly wasted food to UK households is £10 billion a year, £2 billion higher than previously estimated according to new research published today by WRAP.
The research gives detailed new insights into the nature and amount of food waste thrown away in the UK and is believed to be the most comprehensive study of its kind ever carried out.
It reveals that the average household throws out £420 of good food a year. For the average family with children it’s higher at £610 – money which could have helped pay household bills.
Researchers found that more than half the good food thrown out, worth £6 billion a year, is bought and simply left unused or untouched. For example, each day 1.3 million unopened yoghurt pots, 5,500 whole chickens and 440,000 ready meals are thrown away in the UK. The study revealed that £1 billion worth of wasted food is still “in date”. It costs local authorities £1 billion a year to dispose of food waste.
Stopping the waste of good food could avoid 18 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents from being emitted each year – the same as taking 1 in 5 cars off of UK roads.
Launching the report The Food We Waste Liz Goodwin, Chief Executive of WRAP, described the findings as “shocking”.
“Food waste has a significant environmental impact. This research confirms that it is an issue for us all, whether as consumers, retailers, local or central Government. I believe it will spark a major debate about the way food is packaged, sold, stored at home, cooked and then collected when it is thrown out.“
She added: “What shocked me the most was the cost of our food waste at a time of rising food bills, and generally a tighter pull on our purse strings. It highlights that this is an economic and social issue, as well as about how much we understand the value of our food. Tackling the problem of food waste will be at the heart of WRAP’s work over the next three years.”
Julia Falcon of WRAP’s campaign, Love Food Hate Waste, said: “This report shows we could all be saving money and time by making better use of our food. We’ve found there’s a real demand for quick and easy ideas and Love Food Hate Waste can help with tips which turn into good habits in the kitchen.”
Environment Minister Joan Ruddock said: “These findings are staggering in their own right, but at a time when global food shortages are in the headlines this kind of wastefulness becomes even more shocking.
“This is costing consumers three times over. Not only do they pay hard-earned money for food they don’t eat, there is also the cost of dealing with the waste this creates. And there are climate change costs to all of us of growing, processing, packaging, transporting, and refrigerating food that only ends up in the bin.
“Preventing waste in the first place has to remain a top priority. WRAP’s advice on the changes everyone can make to ensure they cut their own waste – and their own bills – makes sense all round.”
For more information on WRAP and the report click HERE |