Shoppers binning less food, says new survey

Shoppers are throwing away less food than they did a year ago, according to research by the UK Food and Drink Federation.

Half of the respondents to the six monthly consumer survey of more than 1,000 people claim to be throwing away a lot less or a little less food.

The survey also looked at how important environmental issues are to consumers, with the majority – 86% – concerned about food waste and an equal number wanting to see packaging waste reduced. Using packaging which can be recycled, reused or bio-degraded was important to 81% of the respondents.

Shoppers also supported the food industry using new technologies and initiatives to reduce environmental impact.

“We are really encouraged by these figures that show we are not wasting as much food as we were a year ago,” says FDF director of communications Terry Jones. “Around 5.3 million tonnes of perfectly good food is thrown out each year, which is a waste of resources and money. Shoppers have good intentions and are buying fresh produce in order to eat healthily but often this goes to waste. It can be avoided by menu planning and using a good mix of fresh and frozen.

“We are also pleased to see that shoppers are still interested in the environment and want to see more done to reduce energy and water use and source sustainable raw materials. The food industry has been doing a lot to resolve this and is now sending less than 10% of its food waste to landfill.”