It is easy to understimate the social and environmental impact of food waste. We hope that this 10 food waste facts give you an insight into the issue and why organisations like The Felix Project play a key role in trying to solve the current food imbalance situation
The UK wastes almost 10 million tonnes of food every year. Almost 2 million tonnes come from the food industry, and currently less than 1% is recycled for human consumption.
8.4 million people in the UK are struggling to eat. 1.5 million adults in London and 400,000 children experience hunger -that´s in the capital of one of the richest countries in the world!
65% of UK adults admit to buying too much food that ends up being thrown away, with London and Newcastle reporting the highest rates of food waste. WRAP estimates that 1 in every 5 shopping bags is fully wasted!
One of the most commonly wasted foods in the UK are potatoes; 5.8 million whole potatoes! Bubble and squeak anyone?!
Right at the top of the food waste chain is bread, too. We waste almost 900,000 tonnes of bread every year – which is a mind-blowing 24 million slices every day. No need for us to tell you how many sandwiches that could make...
Producing food requires significant natural resources including land, water and energy. On a global scale the food system generates between 25%-30% of total greenhouse gas emissions, and the agricultural supply chains uses 70% of global freshwater reserves.
Every tonne of food waste ending in landfill produces approximately 4.2 tonnes of greenhouse gases. If it were a country, food waste would be the third highest emitter of greenhouse gases behind the USA and China!
The most common reasons for food wasted at industry level are overproduction, damaged packaging, manufacturing or order mistakes, stock control issues, cosmetic standards and confusion surrounding dates (best before, use by, display until).
40% of food waste in the hospitality industry are carbohydrates. Forget team ‘no carbs before marbs’! We are definitely all for the carb loading camp!
To end on a cheerier note, every day The Felix Project rescues almost 10 tonnes of perfectly good and healthy surplus food. This food is equivalent to almost 6.5 million meals a year, delivered to charities, primary schools and holiday programmes in London who fight hunger in the Capital.
