the problem of food waste andrew parry (wrap). what ill cover…. food waste in the uk how extending...
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The problem of food waste
Andrew Parry (WRAP)
What I’ll cover….
Food waste in the UKHow extending product life could helpExisting and future opportunitiesSummary
Food waste arising in the UK
Around 15 mt arising each year
Worth ca £17 billion >30 mt CO2e Household = ca 50% of the
total, most could be avoided:– £680 per average family– 17 billion “5 a day” portions– 16% of calories and 23% of
fibre in food purchased are “lost” due to waste
Avoidable food & drink(£12 billion)
Cooked, prepared or served too much(ca. £4.8 billion)
Not used in time(ca. £6.7 billion)
Household food waste
Food type (avoidable; ‘not used in time’; selection)
Annual weight of waste in UK
(tonnes / year)
Annual cost of avoidable waste
(£ million)
1 Standard bread 480,000 570
2 Milk 200,000 160
3 Potato (fresh) 180,000 150
4 Apple 170,000 280
6 Banana 78,000 94
7 Yoghurt / yoghurt drink 74,000 190
8 Fruit juice & smoothies 66,000 80
9 Pork / ham / bacon 66,000 320
10 Speciality bread 59,000 220
11 Tomato 55,000 100
14 Cakes etc 47,000 140
15 Oranges 46,000 68
16 Poultry 42,000 190
17 Carrot 40,000 31
18 Soft / berry fruit 38,000 140
19 Stone fruit 37,000 150
Reasons stated for throwing away food
6
The Individual
Food-waste specific
behaviours
Intermediate Outcome: Quantity of household food waste
Final Outcomes: Environmental and
economic impact of food waste
Influences: Cultural, Governmental, Demographic, Technological, Economic, Industrial
Attitudes
Values
Motivation
Habit
Knowledge & skills related
to behaviour
Awareness of the issue
Facilities & resources
Retail Supply Chain
RetailPortioning &
storage ‘devices’
Marketing
Price promotions
Communications
campaign
Product-Shelf life /
formulation
-Production methods
& location
Packaging-Functionality
-Labelling
Potential impact of key changes
Tonnes per year food waste preventable
Modelling approach – influence of product life
7%
17%
2%
10%
6 d 9 d
9
What food issues concern consumers?
% of people mentioning (average number of mentions = 4.25
Factors influencing choice in store
* *
Strategies to reduce household food waste
National \ large scale communication
Community engagement & support
– Awareness raising & enabling behaviour change
Changes to products, packaging & labelling
– Making it easier for consumers to buy the right amount, and use what is bought
Helping consumers to reduce food waste
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
The three top opportunities were identified as:
• Achieve clarity and consistency on food dates
• Develop and provide more effective storage guidance
• Investigate extending shelf-life through increased use of packaging and food technology
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Manufacture &setting shelf-life
Distribution In store In home Opened
• Raw materials• Formulation & processing• Packaging, MA etc• Approach to setting life (frequency
& nature of testing; use of models; guidelines; benchmarking vs others etc)
• Historical decisions• Retailer specification• Expected storage conditions (supply
chain & in-home)• Brand positioning
• Forecasting; ordering &manufacturing flexibility
• Transport & storage times• Residence time in-store• Promotions
• Time from store to home
• Temperatures• Storage location• Fridge temperatures• Use of packaging etc
Many factors influence “available” product life
Many factors influence “available” product life
15
Manufacture &setting shelf-life
Distribution In store In home Opened
• Raw materials• Formulation & processing• Packaging, MA etc• Approach to setting life (frequency
& nature of testing; use of models; guidelines; benchmarking vs others etc)
• Historical decisions• Retailer specification• Expected storage conditions (supply
chain & in-home)• Brand positioning
• Forecasting; ordering &manufacturing flexibility
• Transport & storage times• Residence time in-store• Promotions
• Time from store to home
• Temperatures• Storage location• Fridge temperatures• Use of packaging etc
Increasing product life is taking place
Mean number of days
Min MaxStd.
Deviation
Carrots 4.2 1 8 1.3
Apples 7.0 2 19 2.8
Potatoes 5.1 1 10 1.6
Variation in “available” product life
Fresh produce (pre-packed, standard)
Summary Food ‘not used in time’ makes up >50% of
household food waste Increasing product life (without impacting
on quality or safety) could deliver significant benefits – across the supply chain
Much is already being done by industry New research in progress by WRAP, to help
identify further opportunities Need to understand risks & benefits of
specific approaches (consumer, commercial, environmental etc) and how they compare (e.g. packaging vs processing solutions)
