Reducing Your Food Waste Saves You Money

The average family in the UK spends £3312 per year on food they buy for their home. This does not include takeaways or eating out which is an additional £1716 a year. Given the current global issues causing the increase in food costs, the average in 2022 could be higher.

Even with the costs increasing as a nation, the UK still wastes an estimated 19.3% of all food purchased. Wrap calculates that 70% of all food waste in the UK is created by households. Compared to retail, which wastes 3%, we can all help to reduce waste and cause a big shift in CO2 and plastic packaging use.

The good news is that there is lots we can do to reduce our food costs which directly benefits our wonderful earth. Just think, if we can reduce our food waste from 20% to 0% through buying less, the average family would save £662 a year.

Here are our top 5 tips to help you fight the war on food waste and save you money.

1. Buying loose fruit and vegetables helps to reduce single use plastic waste, therefore reducing CO2 emissions. It also allows you to buy the right amount, needed for the day/week which reduces waste. And buying loose is usually cheaper.

• Plan your meals – planning your weekly meals means you can buy the right amount of ingredients. It makes it easier to cook in bulk at home so left-over tea can be your lunch the next day. This saves you time and can reduce cooking energy costs.

• Use your Community Fridge – these are a great addition to any village or town as they take food, close to their use and sell-by date, from local supermarkets and growers. Anyone can pop in and pick up what they need. And if you have any spare food, you can take it down for others to use. Check your local Facebook groups or here to find your closest fridge.

• Buy in Bulk & Zero Waste – If you are able to buy in bulk this will work out cheaper in time. Buying from a Zero Waste store can also help reduce the cost and is a big help to reduce packaging. Here is our Urthee Blog on Zero Waste

• Best Before and Use By labels – Best before items are very often ok to eat for days after the suggested date. Smell to see if it’s not right and see if the packaging has expanded which suggest it’s gone past it’s best. For Use By items, can you freeze them for future use?

And just to squeeze one last suggestion in. If you have a compost bin then add waste, uncooked food, to that. It will rot down nicely to help you grow food at home.

Food costs per Person

This helpful chart shows the average spend per week for individuals and families. It breaks down the money spent on groceries for home and also money spent on takeaways and restaurants.

Source: https://www.nimblefins.co.uk/average-uk-household-cost-food

Average Food Cost per Week UK

It is very encouraging that we can all make a difference when it comes to food waste. By taking some small, simple steps can help to save money, reduce CO2 and have a big impact to reduce plastic packaging.

We’d love to hear what action you have taken to reduce your food costs and food waste. Please do share to help us all make an even bigger impact.