Food waste

Partner: The Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts; WRAP

    The Challenge

    Insights Report: Domestic Food Waste

    Report outlining the scale of the issue and the nature of the problem, the main types of food wasted, key audiences, key food-wasting behaviours and the cultural context of daily decision that causes these.

    Survey of Existing Consumer Products and Services which Reduce Food Waste

    Report broken down by the six stages in the domestic food cycle. A summary highlights common themes and analyses how the effectiveness of these products could be improved.

    Infographic: The Truth About Food Waste

    Infographic showing scale of domestic food waste and relative environmental impact of food waste and food packaging

    Food waste is a major environmental problem in the UK and over half of this is generated in the home. [1] Preventing avoidable foodwaste could save the equivalent of 17 million tonnes CO2 emissions annually.[2] These greenhouses gases are produced both when the food rots and in the production, transport and storage of food, so its important that unnecessary food doesn’t go to waste. Despite the fact that it costs the average household around £60 a month, 50% think about cost of this wastage (both to themselves and the environment) ‘a little’ or ‘not at all.’ [3]

    No one plans to waste food. Many of the behaviours that lead to food waste are semi-automatic, undertaken without conscious intent. They are shaped by habit, which in turn is influenced by the products and services that surround planning meals, purchasing food, storing and preparing food for eating, serving, eating and finally disposing of food that is not eaten. As in other areas of behaviour change, small changes to these products and services have the potential to significantly influence food waste habits, facilitating changes to this important environmental behaviour.

    We are working with The Sainsbury Family Charitable Truststo decrease food wastage, focusing on domestic behaviours amongst a mainstream audience, with a particular focus on families with young children.We are currently working through our Research and Development processin order to create a consumer product or service which changes behaviour and reduces domestic food waste.

    Sources

    [1] WRAP 2013, Estimates of food and packaging waste in the UK grocery retail and hospitality supply chain, Banbury: WRAP
    [2] Quested, T., Ingles, R. & Parry, A. (2013) Household Food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2012, Banbury: WRAP
    [3] Quested, T., Ingles, R. & Parry, A. (2013) Household Food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2012, Banbury: WRAP; Chapagain, A. & James, K. (2007) Food behaviour consumer research: Quantitive Phase, Banbury: WRAP

    Statistics

    In the UK we waste 7 million tonnes of food and drink a year, which is 19% of the total amount bought (by weight). Enough to fill 9 Wembley Stadiums. [1]

    This is a major environmental problem, causing 17 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. [2]

    60% of the food wasted, 4.2 million tonnes, is deemed ‘avoidable’, perfectly edible food that has been thrown away for a variety of reasons and this is worth around £12.5 billion. This includes 86 million chickens a year and 24 million slices of bread a day. [3]

    The average household wastes around £470 a year by throwing away food, and around £60 a month and £700 a year if its a household with children. This is around 160kg of avoidable food waste per household each year, which generates 0.62 tonnes CO2. [4]

    Many people think the retail sector is the biggest source of food waste in the UK, but in fact over 50% of food waste is generated in the home. [5]

    Whilst increasing the amount of food waste we compost is important, reduction in the amount generated in the first place is crucial. 1 tonne of food waste prevented avoids 4.02 tonnes CO2, whereas 1 tonne of food waste diverted from landfill to anaerobic digestion avoids just 0.5 tonnes of CO2. [6]

    Some items have particularly high carbon footprints due to the way they are produced and transported, such as milk, wheat products and coffee, and as such are major contributors to our bins’ carbon footprints. [7]

    The most commonly wasted food items by weight are bread, potatoes, milk and soft drinks. [8]

    Fresh vegetables and salads make up 19% (810,000 tonnes) of all avoidable food wasted, drinks 17% (710,000 tonnes), bakery items 11% (450,000 tonnes), home-made and pre-prepared meals 10% (440,000 tonnes) and dairy and eggs 10% (420,000 tonnes). [9]

    The following %s of people report they throw away these types of food a significant amount:
    Bought but not opened – 18%
    Opened not all prepared/eaten – 24%
    Prepared but not served 24%
    Served but not eaten 32%
    Stored after preparation but not eaten – 22% [10]

    48% of the avoidable food wasted is untouched or opened/started but not finished
    31% of the avoidable food wasted is cooked, prepared or served too much. [11]

    Young professionals, families with school age children and social renters are the worst offenders when it comes to food waste, but its something most of us are guilty of.[12]

    Sources

    [1] Quested, T., Ingles, R. & Parry, A. (2013) Household Food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2012, Banbury: WRAP
    [2] Quested, T., Ingles, R. & Parry, A. (2013) Household Food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2012, Banbury: WRAP
    [3] Quested, T., Ingles, R. & Parry, A. (2013) Household Food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2012, Banbury: WRAP
    [4] Quested, T., Ingles, R. & Parry, A. (2013) Household Food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2012, Banbury: WRAP
    [5] WRAP 2013, Estimates of food and packaging waste in the UK grocery retail and hospitality supply chain, Banbury: WRAP
    [6] Quested, T., Parry, A., Easteal, S. & Swannell, R. (2011) Food and drink from households in the UK, Nutrition Bulletin, 36, 460-467
    [7]Quested, T., Parry, A., Easteal, S. & Swannell, R. (2011) Food and drink from households in the UK, Nutrition Bulletin, 36, 460-467
    [8] Quested, T., Ingles, R. & Parry, A. (2013) Household Food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2012, Banbury: WRAP
    [9] Quested, T., Ingles, R. & Parry, A. (2013) Household Food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2012, Banbury: WRAP
    [10] Cox, J & Downing, P. (2007) Food behaviour consumer research: Quantitive Phase, Banbury: WRAP
    [11] WRAP 2013, Estimates of food and packaging waste in the UK grocery retail and hospitality supply chain, Banbury: WRAP
    [12] Cox, J & Downing, P. (2007) Food behaviour consumer research: Quantitive Phase, Banbury: WRAP

    The Solution

    We have undergone a research phase and have released two reports: Impact Report: Domestic Food Waste and a Survey of Existing Consumer Products and Services which Reduce Food Waste. To download these, see under The Challenge.

    We are now using this research to develop our own product or service that facilitates behaviours which reduces domestic food waste. We will go through our R&D process, brainstorming, prototyping, testing and refining until we have a solution we are ready to pilot.

    If you are working in this sphere and are interested in exploring ways of working together, please get in touch with Tori on [email protected]

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