Almost a fifth of the 38
million tones of food
and drink that is brought into UK home is still
ending up in the bin, according to waste reduction body Waste and
Resource Action Programme
(Wrap). Apparently almost two-thirds of that waste could be avoided.
Wrap's
figures show there was an estimated 7.2
million tonnes of household food waste in the UK in 2010, down 13
per cent from the 8.3 million tonnes thrown away in 2006/2007.
Much of the reduction appears to have come from
households not throwing away as much
as still-edible food as they have
been. However, people could avoid
food throwing away up to 5.8 million tonnes of food
waste that goes into the bin, down the
drain or into compost heap each year.
Top tips
There are lots of easy ways to reduce the amount of food we
waste but it isn't always easy to identify what food is being
thrown away and why.
Try keeping a diary for one week, making a note of the 'edible'
food you throw away and the reason it's going in the bin.
Is it because the fruit or vegetables have gone off before
anyone ate them or are there leftovers each night? This should help
you make changes to reduce waste.
Here are some other ideas:
- Plan your week's meals and always shop with a list - that way
you won't overspend and buy more than you need.
- If fresh food, such as fruit, bread and milk, goes off because
it doesn't last the week, try to buy these items when you run out,
rather than as part of a big weekly shop. Instead of ordering one
family sized organic box, you could try ordering two smaller ones
that arrive at different times of the week (this might involve
shopping with two different companies depending on their delivery
schedules).