Wasting Food Feeds Climate Change – Food Waste Action Week to break the cycle

28 January 2021

  • Wasting Food Feeds Climate Change, says WRAP, as momentum grows for UK’s first national week of action on wasting food. 
  • Food Waste Action Week names strategic partners, including Asda, Co-op, Hampshire LA, KFC, M&S, Premier Foods, Sodexo, Unilever and Waitrose & Partners.

WRAP, the UK’s leading sustainability charity, today announces names of the first strategic partner organisations committed to the inaugural Food Waste Action Week.

Food Waste Action Week will take place between Monday 1st to Sunday 7th March, with activities happening across the whole of the UK. The Week will link organisations across the food supply chain and beyond to stop food going to waste and curb the contribution it makes towards climate change. All are united in the simple message to their staff, customers and clients - “Wasting Food Feeds Climate Change”

Despite the ongoing lockdown, Food Waste Action Week will ask the public to take part in a simple Challenge to try to reduce their own household food waste to as close to zero as possible. WRAP and partners will share simple food management tips and techniques proven to help prevent wasting food. The huge public campaign will be headed by a well-known public figure, who WRAP will announce prior to the event. They will help bring alive the message that Wasting Food Feeds Climate Change by focussing on a different theme each day, from food storage and portion planning to creative ways to use up food, and practical steps such as setting fridge temperature correctly. All based on the seven main causes of food being wasted in the home.

The public will see information and activities happening throughout the Week across social media and digital platforms, with hard-hitting creative assets communicating the message wasting food feeds climate change, and stressing that we all have a part to play in breaking the cycle. There will be widescale action from an array of well-known influencers helping people stop food that could have been eaten ending up in the bin, with daily support and tips from WRAP’s food experts.

The campaign already has 27 strategic partners, and 43 supporting partners signed up, and WRAP is calling on others to commit. Marcus Gover, CEO of WRAP, said “Wasting food is a major cause of climate change – it generates more greenhouse gas emissions than all the commercial flights in the world. We know through our research that the climate change emergency matters to people so this is something we can – and must – act on together. It is time to focus on saving one of our most precious resources instead of generating greenhouse gases producing food that is never eaten.

"I’m delighted to be launching the first UK Food Waste Action Week in March, and to have such strong support from our partners across sectors. Together we will inspire real and lasting change. Food Waste Action Week gives organisations a unique opportunity to capture their customers’ attention as part of a national event and help them to play their part in eliminating food being wasted and tackling climate change.”

The 2020 Nobel Peace Prize winner The World Food Programme is supporting The Week, and Elisabeth Faure, Director UK Office said of the importance of food for humanity and the planet: “At the World Food Programme, we see hunger and its devastating consequences every day, with one-in-nine people going to bed hungry, but globally one-third of the food we produce is lost or wasted. We all need to value food more and do our bit to make a difference for the future of our planet and we can do that by getting behind Food Waste Action Week."

WRAP is partnering with some of the UK’s leading brands, retailers, manufacturers, hospitality & food service businesses, universities, charities and local authorities. Partners have access to creative assets to re-enforce messaging and communicate the devastating impact wasting food that could have been eaten has on climate change, and what they’re doing about it. This will be via in-store messaging, staff engagement, social media activity, competitions, blogs, videos and other communication activities. The first confirmed strategic partners are outlined below. Given the consumer interest in climate change, WRAP is convinced that the food brands and retailers aligned and supporting its core messages will increase their brand recognition and reputation. 

Albert Bartlett  Hisense           
Approved Food KFC
Arla Leicestershire County Council 
Asda

M&S

Nestlé UK & Ireland

Berry Gardens Oddbox
Brighton & Hove Food Partnership  Premier Foods
British Standards Institution Puffin Produce
Co-op Rutland LA and Youth Council 
Cranswick Sodexo
Danone  Too Good To Go
Dunbia The WI
Greater Manchester LA Unilever
Hampshire LA Waitrose & Partners 

WRAP is keen to invite more organisations to come forward to help spread the message.

Despite the huge impact of the pandemic on many businesses, Food Waste Action Week will involve partners from the Hospitality and Food Service sector through WRAP’s revamped Guardians of Grub campaign. The Week has strong support from trade bodies, and is an opportunity to engage with their customers. In addition to the week being headed by a special celebrity to be announced, chef and restaurateur Adam Handling said "I'm so excited to be supporting WRAP's first ever Food Waste Action Week to help spread awareness of our wasted food and how it's impacting global climate change. It's an issue that has always been close to my heart when running my restaurants, and I'm really looking forward to sharing some of my tips for reducing food waste as part of this campaign, both for inspiring home cooks and for other bar and restaurant owners. As a population, we waste so much food needlessly when all it takes is a bit of creativity to turn ingredients that may have been thought of as waste into delicious meals! That's why this campaign is so important, so that we can all learn more and play our part in cutting our carbon footprint by joining the food waste fight."

For more information on getting involved contact WRAP here

-ENDS-

 

Notes to Editor

Notes to editor

Environment Minister Rebecca Pow: “Cutting food waste is not just about saving money, but also a vital part of the work we are doing to tackle climate change and protect our precious environment.

"Far too much food is thrown away, but we can take action to address this, and Food Waste Action Week will be a key opportunity to bring the whole food supply chain together, from farm to fork, to tackle this important issue.”

Government Food Waste Champion Ben Elliot: “I am passionate about cutting food waste. It has a huge carbon footprint, particularly in terms of the amount of energy used for its production, manufacture, storage and often unnecessary disposal.

“Food Waste Action Week will be a key vehicle for raising awareness amongst the public, the food industry and the retail sector about just how much food is wasted every year, the impact it has on the planet, and how we can all help to tackle it.”

  • List of supporting partners
ABP    Panasonic          
Broadland District Council  Princes
Dacorum Borough Council  Sainsbury’s
DPS Saputo
EAUC Saputo Dairy UK  
Ethical Fruit Company Ltd

South Norfolk Council

Swansea University

Fooditude Tesco
Fyffes The Scouts
G’s

The Packaging Federation 

Toast Ale

Hilton Foods Too Good To Go
INCPEN The Full Freezer
Islington Council The University of Bristol
ISS The University of Cardiff 
Lidl The University of Greenwich  
LWARB The University of Leeds
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council  The University of Loughborough  
Neighbourly The University of Newcastle
NUS The University of Swansea
Ocado The University of Warwick 
OLIO

World Food Programme

Worldwide Fruit

Further quotes from strategic partners:

Sarah McDonald, Brand Manager, Albert Bartlett: “At Albert Bartlett, we’re working hard to support the fight against food waste and are proud to pledge our support to Food Waste Action Week as a Strategic Partner. We’re committed to getting the most out of every potato, starting at our processing operations, following through to our brand messaging. From keeping potatoes at their best to using up leftovers, we’re encouraging consumer to love their spuds for longer! Supporting Food Waste Action Week will support our efforts, increase awareness and together, work to fight food waste.”

Jonathan Straight, Brand Ambassador, Approved Food: “At Approved Food we are passionate about stopping food from going to waste. We rescue perfectly good surplus food every single day by stopping it going to landfill or other forms of disposal. We make this food available to our customers as well as donating some of it to helping the needy.One of our biggest motivators is the impact that wasting food has on our planet. If food waste were a country, it would be the third biggest emitter of CO2 behind the USA and China. We want to make a difference and so we are getting behind Food Waste Action Week in order to raise awareness of this issue. We are doing as much as we can, but it is easy for others to reduce their own food waste at home. This is something we want to encourage.”

Emma Stanbury, Spokesperson for Arla Cravendale: “Educating and supporting consumers on food waste and the impact it has on the environment is something we are hugely passionate about. Over 490 million pints of milk are discarded every year and as a dairy cooperative owned by farmers, we want to do all we can to ensure their hard work in producing milk is not wasted when it thrown away in the home. We are pleased to support WRAP’s Food Waste Action Week and all that is stands for to encourage shoppers to think differently about food waste and how small steps and changes can make a big difference.”

Susan Thomas, Senior Director Sustainability, Asda: “Asda are supporting WRAP’s ‘Food Waste Action Week’ as we believe raising awareness of food waste as well as providing clear guidance for customers, will make a significant difference to reducing food waste and to help them save money at the same time.” 

Wayne Raines, Head of Technical, Berry Gardens: “We are proud to announce that we are committing our support to the Food Waste Action Week taking place between 1st and 7th March 2021. As a business we will be hosting a number of initiatives to encourage our employees, members and consumer community to make a conscious effort to reduce food waste during Food Waste Action Week and beyond. We want to take this opportunity to help create a countrywide conscience around household food waste and raise awareness of the effect it has on climate change.”

Ali Ghanimi, Project Manager, Brighton & Hove Food Partnership: “The team at Brighton & Hove Food Partnership are excited to be a strategic partner for the food waste action week and we pledge our support by doing all we can to raise awareness of food waste and its impact on climate change in the city of Brighton & Hove.”

Richard Werran, EMEA Director of Food and Retail Supply Chain, British Standards Institute: “We all have a responsibility to reduce food waste where we’re able to; whether it’s buying just what we need or finding a way to use leftovers. WRAP’s Food Waste Action Week supports this important aim and can help each of us take action and reduce food waste. At BSI we are committed to supporting and engaging with clients who strive to make far-reaching impacts to drive change across their entire supply chains by implementing standards to reduce both food and energy waste whilst also tackling carbon emissions to net zero.”

Iain Ferguson, Environment Manager, Co-op: “Co-op is committed to preventing food waste – both through our own operations and through supporting our customers and members to reduce food waste at home. We recognise that it’s only through collective action that we can move the dial on food waste and ultimately, its impact on climate change and the planet we share. As a strategic partner, we actively support the aims of Food Waste Action Week 2021 and welcome the drive for increasing awareness around the impact of food waste and the inspiration it will provide to encourage citizens to take action together.”

Chris Aldersley, Chief Operating Officer, Cranswick plc: “Cranswick is taking action to eliminate food waste, not just within our own farms and factories but across our entire value chain. As part of our Second Nature sustainability programme we have pledged to become a zero-food waste business by 2030 and in the last two years alone have more than halved edible food loss and waste across the group. As part of this journey we are educating our colleagues on how to prevent food waste both in the workplace and at home, inviting them to become Cranswick Waste Warriors to drive real action at work, but also in the wider community. As a strategic partner, we are proud to support Wrap and their Food Action Week campaign which will help raise awareness about the impact of food waste and inspire people to work together to tackle it head on.”

Christopher Hillman, Head of Sustainability and Social Innovation, Danone UK & Ireland: “At Danone UK & Ireland, we believe the health of the planet and its people are interconnected, and that we need a global food system that supports both equally. As such, we have a responsibility to reduce the amount of food that is wasted across our operations as well as supporting our consumers in preventing unnecessary food waste in the home. We believe Food Waste Action Week is a perfect opportunity to help increase the awareness of food waste across the industry and with consumers.”

Gill Higgins, Head of Sustainability, Dunbia: “Food waste is a global challenge, resulting in significant loss of scarce resources and a key accelerator of climate change. In the UK, Dunbia are members of WRAP’s Courtauld Commitment and Meat in a Net Zero World. We have pledged to work with our supply chains and the food industry towards the collective ambition to halve food waste in the UK, including in our homes. We are delighted to support the first Food Waste Action Week in the UK.” 

Councillor Rob Humby, Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Economy, Transport and Environment, Hampshire County Council: “Hampshire County Council is proud to support the first national Food Waste Action Week. Reducing the food we throw away at home is one step we can all take to help meet our Climate Change carbon reduction target, while also saving money. I hope Food Waste Action Week will inspire everyone in Hampshire to recognise the part they can play, and the contribution their actions can make to reducing food waste.”

Arun Bhatoye, Head of Marketing, Hisense UK: “Food waste is on everyone’s agenda and it’s a problem we need to tackle together. Whether it’s shopping for food more conscientiously or simply batch cooking and freezing your leftovers for later, there are small steps we can all take. We’ve been working with WRAP and Love Food Hate Waste since mid-2020 as supporting the movement to reduce food waste is of utmost importance to us. I’m very proud to see the Hisense name as part of this campaign and we look forward to seeing the impact of Food Waste Action Week.” 

Jenny Packwood, Director, Responsibility and Reputation, KFC UK & Ireland: “We’re proud to be a strategic partner of WRAP and supporting the first ever Food Waste Action Week. We know there’s work to be done to assess the impact global food waste has on production and supply chain long term - and we’re excited to start the journey with WRAP to see what we can all achieve by 2030.”

Hazel Culley, Head of Food Sustainability, M&S: “Our goal of sourcing all M&S products with care and ensuring nothing goes to waste is core to how we do business. But just as we’ve made changes in our own operations, from better predicting stock levels to donating surplus to charity partners, we want to help our customers take action against food waste in their own homes too. We’re delighted to support WRAP’s Food Waste Action Week by committing to making it easier for our customers with tips, ideas and recipe inspiration. By collaborating as an industry through this brilliant initiative, our hope is that we can spark change for a more sustainable future – one plate at a time.”

Steve Butterworth, CEO, Neighbourly: "It's been fantastic to see the progress WRAP has made across a multitude of campaigns supporting both industry and individuals in taking action to reduce food waste - which is one of the most significant contributors to climate change. But with 70% of food waste happening in the home, there's still much more to do. That's why Neighbourly is proudly backing WRAP's Food Waste Awareness Week campaign this March by spreading the word across our 15,000 strong network of charity partners, getting conversations started and encouraging action in communities across the country."

Heather Lynch, Sustainability Manager, Oddbox: “We pledge to support Food Waste Action Week 365 days a year. Food waste is one of the biggest contributors to climate change. It's easy to forget that when we throw away food, we are also wasting all the energy and water it takes to grow, harvest, transport, and package it. Reducing food waste can be one of the most impactful things we do to address the climate crisis. We're helping people around the UK do so by rescuing fruit & veg that could have otherwise gone to waste fresh from growers.” 

Yilmaz Erceyes, Chief Marketing Officer, Premier Foods: "Our wide range of products, from much-loved British brands like Oxo, Bisto, Sharwood's, Ambrosia or Angel Delight, can be found in around 95% of UK households and with 70% of food waste happening at home, we are delighted to support WRAP's first Food Waste Action Week. We continue to successfully reduce food waste within our operations, and through this campaign will be using the power of our brands to help consumers reduce theirs, with a range of easy 'no brainer' leftover recipes."

Mererid James, Sustainability Executive, Puffin Produce Ltd: “Puffin Produce are dedicated to preventing food waste throughout our supply chain, from farm to fork, and are proud signatories of the Courtauld Commitment.  We pledge our support for Food Waste Action Week 2021 as we believe that working together with WRAP to share vital messages about wasting food is the best way to emphasise the importance of preventing food waste on the environment.  Our food is as precious as our planet, and as a strategic partner we have a fantastic opportunity to inspire our citizens to make essential changes that can reduce wasted food and ultimately help protect the planet we all share.”

Heather Kelly, Chair of Rutland Youth Council: "Rutland Youth Council is proud to be a Food Waste Action Week partner. As young people, we recognise and support the great work WRAP is doing in order to help raise awareness of the struggles our environment is facing, and will continue to face, if we aren’t able to adapt. Our own “Taste It, Don’t Waste It!” campaign is actively working with families in Rutland supporting them in wasting less food by embedding simple techniques into their everyday routines. By recording and promoting the experiences of these families we aim to inspire the wider population to take their own steps towards wasting less food. We firmly believe that small changes can bring high rewards if we all work together.”

Ana Svab, Corporate Responsibility Manager, Sodexo: "At Sodexo, we have set ourselves challenging environmental targets, including reducing food waste by 50% by 2030 through initiatives such as our data-driven food waste prevention programme, WasteWatch. However, we know there is always more we can do, and that’s we are proud to be a strategic partner of Food Waste Action Week. We look forward to helping to raise awareness of this important issue, and the steps we can all take to reduce waste, with our teams and customers during the week and beyond.” 

Jamie Crummie, Co-Founder, Too Good To Go: “Reducing how much food is wasted is crucial to addressing the climate emergency. Food waste has long flown under the radar as a key contributor to climate change, yet it accounts for 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions. But 2021 is a year for action. We’re delighted to be supporting WRAP’s Food Waste Action Week this March so that we can help to inspire and empower everyone to fight food waste together and create a better future for our planet.” 

Rachel Chambers, Hellmann’s Senior Marketing Manager, Unilever: “At Hellmann’s we’re on a mission to save good food from going to waste, which is why we’re delighted to be supporting WRAP’s Food Waste Action Week, helping to highlight the issue around food waste as well as inspiring more people to ‘make taste not waste’. With our easy leftover recipes, we want to help households reduce their food waste by turning un-loved leftovers into delicious meals.”

Marija Rompani, Director of Sustainability & Ethics, Waitrose & Partners: "Tackling food waste is an absolute priority for Waitrose. We have committed to halving our food waste in our operations and our supply chain, by 2030, and we're also aiming to help halve our customers' household food waste by the same time. As a strategic partner of Food Waste Action Week, it is essential we work together to address this growing issue. We're keen to support collective action to minimise food waste for environmental reasons and to balance the scale of food poverty highlighted during the pandemic."

Further quotes from supporting partners:

Zoe Wiggins, Environmental Projects Lead Officer, Dacorum Borough Council: “Food waste is a huge problem, directly contributing to climate change and we are committed to tackling it. We're getting behind Food Waste Action Week to raise awareness of the issue and help our residents save food and recycle right. For the last five years, we've run a borough-wide food waste challenge. Over 120 Dacorum residents took part last year, with nearly all reporting that they decreased their monthly food waste, saved money and spent less time in the kitchen. We'd like to build on this success and reach even more residents by taking part in Food Waste Action Week.”

Natalie Mcwilliam, Group Head of Responsible Sourcing, DPS: ‘’As WRAP Food Waste Reduction Roadmap supporters, we are committed to Target, Measure and Act to help halve supply chain food waste from farm to fork and proudly support the first Food Waste Action week in the UK to help customers reduce waste at home.’’

Iwona Janik, PhD Head of Technical and Ethical Sourcing, Ethical Fruit Company: “We are committed to Target, Measure and Act to help halve supply chain food waste within our operations and proudly support the first Food Waste Action week in the UK to help customers reduce waste at home.’’

Sam Power, Marketing and Communications Assistant, Fyffes: “Fyffes is the largest importer of Fairtrade and Organic bananas and a leading distributor of pineapples in Europe. As part of our Sustainability Strategy we have committed to achieving zero food loss in all our own operations, in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3. Fyffes is delighted to be a strategic partner to WRAP for Food Waste Action Week. To help our customers minimise waste and stay healthy, we have an easy to follow banana bread recipe for overripe bananas and simple tips like chopping up pineapples on the day of purchase to freeze or refrigerate and make them last longer.’’

Helen Peasnall, Head of Technical and ESG, G’s: “G’s approach has been to view food waste as an environmental, social, and financial cost that can and should be avoided. The business encourages employees and stakeholders to shift attitudes from thinking of waste as an unfortunate and expected by-product to proactively reducing and repurposing waste. G’s food waste reporting and subsequent reduction is a long-term ethical priority across its farms and manufacturing businesses. With this attitude, there has been a 43% reduction in food waste at G’s since 2017. The biggest source of food waste continues to be in the home; G’s fully supports WRAP‘s initiatives during “Food Waste Action Week” and will be promoting key messages both internally with colleagues and externally as a corporate partner.”

Peter Ducker FIH, CEO, Institute of Hospitality:“The Institute of Hospitality has been committed to supporting our members to combatting food waste and making a positive impact on profits and the planet.  We fully support WRAP’s Guardians of Grub campaign and tools which help our sector to develop skills on taking action, and we encourage our members to get involved with the UK’s first Food Waste Action Week 1st to 7th March 2021.” 

Cllr Andrew Western, Lead for the Green City-Region, Greater Manchester Combined Authority: “Greater Manchester Combined Authority, working with our 10 local councils, is proud to support Food Waste Action Week. We announced a climate emergency in 2019, acknowledging that we have to take action now and together and make tackling the impact of climate change our top priority. Wasted food has a huge impact on climate change, from the release of greenhouse gases to the waste of land, water and energy. With over 2.5 million residents living across Greater Manchester, if every one of us took simple steps to reduce the amount of food we throw away we could make a real difference. Most food wasted in the UK comes from our homes. This campaign can help us all to stop wasting food through making small changes to the way we shop, and how we store and prepare food.”

Councillor Cathal Mallaghan, Chair, Mid Ulster District Council: “Mid Ulster District Council already provides a food waste recycling service to every household in the District through the brown bin composting scheme. The Council fully supports WRAP’s Food Waste Action Week 2021. We will be encouraging residents in the district to take part in the challenge, which will help reinforce our existing food waste messaging and empower more people to reduce and then recycle their food waste. Food waste is a huge contributor to climate change, with almost a third of global greenhouse gases coming from our food. So this March why not rise to the challenge and do your bit for the local and global environment by taking part in Food Waste Acton Week 2021!”

Tessa Clarke, Co-Founder & CEO, OLIO: "The link between food waste and the climate crisis has long been overlooked, perhaps because food is seen as so natural. However, with reducing food waste having recently been identified as the #1 most powerful thing humanity can do to avert the worst effects of the climate crisis, OLIO is delighted to be supporting the Food Waste Action Week, which shows how we can all get involved to make a difference, especially in our homes." 

Ruth Cranston, Group Head of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability, Sainsbury's:  "At Sainsbury’s, we understand the financial and environmental importance of reducing food waste. Saving food means saving money and it helps the planet, with 30% of greenhouse gases coming from food production and consumption. We have been working hard meet our goal to halve food waste by 2030 and will continue to take significant steps forward in keeping it to an absolute minimum across our entire value chain. We’re proud to partner with WRAP and help stop wasted food from feeding climate change."

Juliane Caillouette Noble, Managing Director, Sustainable Restaurant Association: “Creating a week in the calendar dedicated to reducing food waste is long overdue. We wholeheartedly support Food Waste Action Week and would urge all foodservice businesses to take this opportunity to tool up with WRAP’s excellent Guardians of Grub resources so they maximise the amount of food they feed people and not bins, while minimising costs and their impact on the planet.”

Kate Hall, Founder, The Full Freezer: "Often the actions required to tackle Climate Change seem out of reach; perhaps giving up our holidays abroad, or our favourite meat. What is so incredibly powerful about tackling food waste is that we don't need to give anything up. Quite the opposite. By learning how to reduce our food waste we save our money and our time and help the planet as a result. There are no organisations to battle against, no petitions to sign. All we need is knowledge and a willingness to change our own habits. Food Waste Action Week is a brilliant way to spread this message and I will be supporting it 100%" 

Sarah Kerry, Partnerships Account Manager, The Scouts: “Reducing the amount of food going into the bin that could be used can have a huge impact on the environment. Young people in Scouting have been working to reduce their food waste and understand the impact through fun activities and learning some new recipes using food that is often thrown away. Food Waste Action Week is a good time for us to change our attitudes towards food waste and encourage others in our communities to do the same.”

Nicholas Hunt, Environmental Manager, The University of Loughborough: “Loughborough University will be supporting Food Waste Action Week through communications to its 20,000 staff and students.  Loughborough University is a top 10 UK University with two unique campuses which normally accommodate over 6,500 students and is contracted to provide around 1 million student meals per year on our Loughborough Campus. We operate food waste segregation across many of our operations and typically generate around 300 tonnes of food waste per annum, so we have long been supporters of the Love Food Hate Waste initiatives as we have sought to reduce this.”

Melissa Stephenson, Assistant Sustainability Officer, The University of Newcastle: “At Newcastle University we are committed to protection of the environment and sustainability, and we want to educate and empower our community to make a difference. WRAP's inaugural Food Waste Action Week is an exciting opportunity to educate our community and beyond of the effect that food waste has on climate change, and the difference that we can make as a collective.”

Fiona Wheatley, Waste and Recycling Officer, The University of Swansea: “Food waste is a significant contributor to climate change, with an estimated 4.4 million tonnes of avoidable household food waste disposed of every year in the UK (myrecyclingwales, 2019). Swansea University understands the need to engage with our students and staff to raise awareness of the importance of reducing food waste, and communicating the impact that wasting food has on the wider global environment. We will be supporting Food Waste Action Week 2021 by using our many interactive digital media platforms to communicate the core messages of the campaign to students and staff across our community to ensure positive change.”

Christine Ennew, Provost. The University of Warwick: “The University of Warwick has declared a Climate Emergency and set net carbon goals for 2030 and 2050 as an integral part of our broader responsibility to protect our environment. As part of this work, we are committed to educating our staff and students about the circular economy and we are committed to reducing our waste, increasing reuse, recycling and recovery. Food has to be part of this – after all - we all eat and so many of us contribute to high levels of unnecessary food waste. During Food Waste Action Week we will be engaging with our community through online events and through social media; we will work to educate and we will support research that will help us all to tackle food poverty and food waste.”

Kate Nichols, CEO of UKHospitality: “WRAP have done some fantastic work in recent years to highlight and tackle the problem of food waste in the hospitality sector. This is a hugely important issue for businesses, individuals and for us all as a society. Tackling food waste will be a major step in addressing climate change, which is arguably the single biggest issue of our time. Even during this time of crisis in the hospitality sector, food waste reduction is important, not only for its environmental benefits but also in protecting businesses financially. We will continue to enthusiastically support WRAP and get involved with Food Waste Action Week and the Guardians of Grub Campaign this year. We recommend that all hospitality businesses utilise the tools that WRAP has made available to monitor and reduce their food waste.”

Andy Mitchell, Senior Technical Manager – M&S, Worldwide Fruit: “We at Worldwide fruit are dedicated to drive out waste from our supply chain and being a fresh fruit business, reducing food waste is hugely important to us, not only because it is hugely important to tackle the ongoing threat of climate change and also feed a growing world population. It also makes finical sense to reduce your waste to the minimum or to utilise your food waste with fantastic charities like Fair share. We hugely support this campaign and urge all suppliers in fresh produce to get behind reducing food waste in the supply chain”

WRAP is a global NGO based in the UK. It is one of the UK’s top 5 environmental charities and works with governments, businesses and individuals to ensure that the world’s natural resources are used sustainably. It is the charity leading The UK Plastics Pact (a world first) as well as Love Food Hate Waste, the Courtauld Commitment, the Sustainable Clothing Action Plan, Textiles 2030 and Recycle Now. WRAP works collaboratively and develops and delivers evidence-based, impactful solutions to reduce the environmental cost of the food we eat, the clothes we wear and the plastic packaging we use. Founded in 2000 in the UK, WRAP now works around the world and is a Global Alliance Partner of The Royal Foundation’s Earthshot Prize.        

Read Our Plan for a Sustainable Planet. Follow our citizen campaigns on Instagram: Love Food Hate Waste @lfhw_uk Recycle Now @recyclenow_uk Wasting Food: It’s Out Of Date @OutOfDateUK Wales Recycles @WalesRecycles Clear on Plastics @ClearOnPlastics Love Your Clothes @LoveYourClothes_UK 

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