The volume of surplus food redistributed has more than trebled in the past six years thanks in part to significant improvement in the foodservice and hospitality sector.
A new report from Wrap found that collectively the UK’s retailers, food manufacturers, hospitality and foodservice businesses and voluntary sector redistributed 106,000 tonnes of surplus food in 2021, the equivalent of 253 million meals. This compares with just 29,000 tonnes redistributed in 2015 and also marks a 16% increase on the 92,000 tonnes redistributed in 2020.
Levels of foodservice redistribution still lag well behind retail and hospitality but are on a sharp upward trajectory: over 6,500 tonnes of surplus food was redistributed by sector businesses in 2021 compared with 1,125 tonnes in 2017. Wrap said the figure was likely to be an underestimate since food surplus from the sector often needs to be redistributed and consumed more quickly and by smaller, local organisations.
The commercial sector took the bulk of surplus food from manufacturers in 2021, with retail the largest supplier to the charitable sector. The majority of foodservice surplus also goes to charitable outlets.
Ambient foods are the most commonly redistributed and saw significant growth between 2020 and 2021, however there was a sharp decline in redistribution of fresh produce suggesting that business efforts to reduce surplus at source are improving.
Wrap said the most common reasons for the increase in redistribution between 2020 and 2021 related to increased capacity among redistribution partners to store ambient or chilled foods, or an increase in staff capacity.
It warned, however, that around 200,000 tonnes of edible food continues to be wasted in supply chains each year.
“It’s devastating to see how much food continues to be wasted from supply chains when so many people are struggling to afford the basics, and food redistributors say they can take more,” said Catherine David, director of collaboration and change at Wrap. “Whilst we welcome the increased amount of food being redistributed in the UK, we know there is a huge amount of good food – 200,000 tonnes of it every year – that could be feeding people.”
