An open letter sent to Defra on Sunday – which marked the UN’s fifth International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste (IDAFLW) – highlighted the issues associated with the scale of food waste across the country.
In the UK, 10.7 million tonnes of food are wasted annually, equating to 15 billion meals and, globally, food waste accounts for 8 to 10% of carbon emissions.
The open letter was spearheaded by Too Good To Go and the British Retail Consortium (BRC). Signatories include Aldi, Nestlé, Ocado, Innocent Drinks and more.
Co-founder of Too Good To Go, Jamie Crummie, said: “Food waste is one of the largest contributors to climate change. In the UK alone, we throw away 10.7 million tonnes of food, at a cost of £21.8 billion annually.
“We are delighted to see the environment secretary set out the creation of a zero-waste economy as a priority. In line with this ambition, and with the support of more than 30 businesses from across the food sector, we hope to see swift implementation of mandatory food waste reporting to ensure transparency and accountability when it comes to our food.”
Introducing mandatory food waste reporting
The open letter urged that by making waste reduction a priority, businesses can “save money, increase efficiency and unlock innovation” in line with the growth mission of the new government.
It highlighted that total food waste has reduced in countries where mandatory food waste reporting has been introduced.
In Austria, total food waste has gone down by one million kilos from the first report in Q4 2023, to the Q2 2024 report.
The letter concluded: “We urge the government to act now. Mandatory food waste reporting is a vital step to a greener, faster growing and more resilient economy.”
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