THE FOOD Standards Agency (FSA) has found that the British public are scaling down on food waste by changing their eating habits due to financial pressures to save money.
According to a new survey carried out by the FSA, the UK’s household food waste has dropped by 21% in the last 7 years and the amount of people who now avoid throwing food away stands at 58% – up 10% since 2010.
The report carried out by the FSA, called ‘2014 Food and You Survey’ is part of an ongoing research exercise which questioned adults about their eating, cooking and shopping habits. Two previous surveys have already been carried out in 2010 (Wave 1) and 2012 (Wave 2).
The research suggests that the economic crisis has had a long-lasting effect on shoppers with 57% relying on one food shop a week and over a quarter of adults buying more food on special offers.
It also found that 55% of women reported to have changed at least one of their eating habits in the last 6 months due to financial reason compared to 45% of men. There was no difference between men and women in the previous survey carried out in 2012.
The FSA stated: “Overall, 52% of respondents said they had made at least one change in their buying or eating arrangements in the last six months for financial reasons, compared with 60% at Wave 2 (2012).”
Waste wise, the survey found that people are controlling their food waste by planning meals in advance and storing their food safely so that it lasts longer. It also revealed that 8% of respondents with an annual household income of less than £26,000 kept their leftovers for a longer period of time.
Click here to find out more about the ‘2014 Food and You survey’.
