Love Food Hate Waste…
Ruth Roberts
Love Food Hate Waste:
how it began
WRAP launched Love
Food Hate Waste in 2007
to help UK households
recognise and tackle the
issue of food waste
Household food and drink in the UK
Household kerbside
collections of residual
waste
Household food waste
collections
1. Waste Data Flow
2. Review of Municipal Waste Composition
3. The Food We Waste (WRAP)
Household waste
recycling centres
Home composting and
fed to animals
Sewer
Kitchen Diary (WRAP)
Down the Drain (WRAP)
27%
22%
2%
49%
Household food and drink waste
in the UK
Avoidable
4.4m tonnes
Total food and drink waste
7.2m tonnes
Possibly Avoidable
Unavoidable
1.4m tonnes
1.4m tonnes
Household food and drink waste
in the UK
Avoidable
4.4m tonnes
Prepared, served, or
cooked too much
Not used in
time
Household food and drink waste
All types of food and drink are
thrown away.
The most prominent by weight
are;
 Fresh vegetables and salad
 drink
 fresh fruit
 bakery
EACH DAY in the UK, we throw
away around…
4.1m
apples
5.3m potatoes
1.7m
bananas
1.4m sausages
1.3m
eggs
The average home throws away
270 kg of food and drink per year
 5kgs per week
 120kg per person,
per year
We all throw away food
1.4
1.2
11
kg per person per week
Kilograms per person per week
1.6
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
00
1616-24
- 24
2525-34
- 34
3534-44
– 44 Age group
4545-54
- 54
Age Group
5555-64
- 64
65+
65+
Environmental Impact
 Producing, storing and transporting
food to us uses up a lot of energy
and resources
 The equivalent of 17 million tonnes
of carbon dioxide per year
 If we were to stop wasting food it would be the
equivalent of taking1 in 5 cars off UK roads
Environmental Impact
Sending food to landfill generates methane which
is one of the most harmful greenhouse gases
Financial impact
UK householders are throwing away £12 billion
worth of good food and drink every year.
 £480 per household per year
 £680 per household with children per year
 Savings of up to £50 a month
What are the retailers doing to
help?
What is the Courtauld
Commitment?
A voluntary agreement between WRAP and
individual retailers and brands to improve
resource efficiency and reduce the carbon and
wider environmental impact of the grocery retail
sector.
53 retailers and brands including…
Courtauld Commitment targets:
To reduce the carbon impact of grocery
packaging by 10%
To reduce UK household food and drink
waste by 4%
To reduce grocery packaging waste in the
supply chain by 5%
Helping consumers buy the right
amount
Helping consumers buy the right
amount
Helping consumers keep food at
its best
Helping consumers keep food at
its best
Practical Tips and Advice
Five Key Behaviours
 It pays to plan
 Know your dates
 Savvy storage
 Perfect portions
 Lovely Leftovers
Key Behaviour 1
It Pays to Plan
The benefits of planning
Planning can help you to save time and money by
encouraging you to:







use up the food you already have
only buy what you need
avoid impulse buys
eat a more nutritionally balanced diet
use up food from your freezer
prepare meals in advance
involve members of the family
Key Behaviour 2
Know your
dates
Key Behaviour 3
Savvy storage
Using the Freezer
 Food can theoretically be stored
in the freezer forever - it only
deteriorates in quality, not
safety
 Changes in quality include
colour, texture and flavour
 Thaw food in fridge so that it
doesn't get too warm. Eat within
24 hours after it’s been defrosted
Key Behaviour 4
Perfect portions
Perfect Portions
 Weigh or measure your food – work
out the right amount for you.
 Encourage people to serve
themselves from dishes on the table
 You don’t need any fancy tools – a
mug, tablespoon, spaghetti measure
or simple scales are all you need
Key Behaviour 5
Lovely leftovers
Five Key Behaviours
 It pays to plan
 Know your dates
 Savvy storage
 Perfect portions
 Lovely Leftovers
Passing the message on….