'ALL THE SINGLE VEGGIES’…CAN SAVE YOU TONNES! Food Waste Action Week says ‘choose what you’ll use’ to save money

To mark the fourth annual Food Waste Action Week, which launches on Monday (18^th March), Love Food Hate Waste is encouraging people to embrace the mantra ‘choose what you’ll use’ to save money and cut food waste. And to get the nation showing some much-needed appreciation for ‘All the Single Veggies’, the campaign has partnered with Gino D’Acampo to show how loose fruit and veg can slash food waste – and save money at the same time.

Forget the single ladies, Love Food Hate Waste’s humorous parody celebrates the wonderful benefits of choosing loose fruit and veg over pre-packed produce. In the video, Gino shows that by opting for loose produce shoppers will not only avoid waste but can also choose exactly what they’ll use - be that a slightly green banana, just two carrots, the perfect baked potato for every member of the family or a single red apple. 

The video launches during Food Waste Action Week as latest Love Food Hate Waste research reveals that UK households are wasting 4.7 million tonnes of edible food every year³. In total, shoppers waste £17 billion on food that ends up in the bin – the equivalent of £1,000 for a household of four. In fact, when it comes to the humble potato – the UK’s most wasted food item – every day in the UK we throw away nearly 3 million whole potatoes. If sold loose, we could reduce the potatoes we waste in our homes by at least 11%.

As shown in the video, simply choosing what we’ll use could:

• Save households money by avoiding costly wasted food.
• Save 60,000 tonnes of food waste (if all apples, potatoes and bananas were sold loose and not packaged).
• Reduce plastic packaging by 8,800 tonnes per year⁴.
• Combined, save more than 80,000 tonnes CO₂e⁵.

Commenting on why single fruit and veggies are the ones for him, Gino said: “Finding out just how much food ends up in the bin really shocked me, so I’m joining Love Food Hate Waste to show some love to ‘All the Single Veggies’ this Food Waste Action Week. As a passionate chef, there’s nothing I love more than choosing the best produce for those I’m cooking for. Being able to pick out just what I need for each dish I make; it can’t be beaten. Saving food, saving money, and getting the best out of your cooking. What could be better?”  

The focus on buying loose is part of a two-pronged approach to both increase public awareness of the benefits of buying loose and encourage more retailers to sell more fresh produce loose, ditching the packaging.

Jackie Bailey, Senior Campaign Manager Love Food Hate Waste, said: “This Food Waste Action Week we want to help people to choose what they’ll use and avoid costly waste. By releasing ‘All the Single Veggies’ with Gino, we’re showing people the many benefits of loose in terms of slashing food and plastic waste, saving families money, and dramatically reducing environmental impact. But right now, the options for loose are limited so, we need changes in the fresh produce aisle and shopper habits to really nail this problem.”

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