More than 200 of the UK’s large food businesses, with around 60% of UK food industry turnover, have reported on their actions to prevent food from entering the waste stream. Those businesses with year-on-year data have achieved an impressive 17% average reduction in food waste.
David Moon, director of collaboration and change at WRAP, said: “The high financial value of food saved by Roadmap businesses illustrates the importance of measuring and managing food that gets wasted. Given current commercial pressures on food businesses, this should be on the agenda for every CEO and finance director.
“Governments have said they will consult on making the reporting of food waste mandatory; I would encourage businesses to get ahead of policy and reap the rewards of adopting good practice. Moreover, this is a practical and cost saving way of contributing to corporate targets for reducing whole chain GHG emissions.”
Businesses have committed to measure their food surplus and waste in a consistent way, share what they’ve learnt and act to reduce their own food waste and that of their suppliers and customers.
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic the businesses have made progress:
- 267 businesses and 47 supporting organisations have now signed up to the Roadmap; an increase of 25% in committed businesses versus September 2020.
- These businesses were between them responsible for 251,000 tonnes of food waste reduction, which prevented the waste of £365 million of food, and potentially the production of over 670,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.
- Roadmap businesses generated 90% of the increase in UK food redistribution between 2018 and 2020, saving 26,000 tonnes more food in 2020. This food had a value of over £50 million and would have provided the equivalent of over 60 million meals.
Ben Elliot, Government Food Waste and Surplus Champion, added: “Forty per cent of all UK large food businesses are signed up to the Food Waste Reduction Roadmap and are making excellent progress – but we need to see more joining the fight.
“I want to see businesses large and small getting involved to Target, Measure and Act on their waste. Only then can we stop the needless waste of resources that happens through good food being thrown away.”