Food Waste Facts

In the UK we throw away 6.7 million tonnes of food each year.

It is estimated that each household throws away £420 worth of food a year, most of which could have been eaten.

A third of all food we buy ends up in the bin.

The main reasons for throwing away food can be grouped into two explanations, “cooking or preparing too much” and “not using food in time”.

The amount of food we throw away is a major contributor to the production of greenhouse gasses, cutting down on food waste could save the same amount of carbon dioxide as taking 1 in 5 cars off the road.

Research suggests that about 40% (by weight) of the food thrown away that could have been eaten is fresh fruit and vegetables (including potatoes).