Potatoes 'among most wasted foods'

Potatoes are one of the top-three foods Britons are throwing away, according to a new Wrap report published today.

The report found that every year 5.8 million potatoes go straight to the bin, as do 24 million slices of bread and 5.9 million glasses of milk.

It said retailers could help by providing clearer labels, as just under half of avoidable food and drink waste (worth £5.6 billion) was classified as ‘not used in time’. The report suggested that clearer date labels, storage advice and freezing guidance could help reduce this.

The study found that household waste is primarily down to buying more than needed, lack of clarity around storage and over-estimating portion sizes.

Wrap’s CEO, Dr Liz Goodwin, today called for a “major combined effort” for retailers, brands, governments and consumers to work together towards a common goal.

“This could result in the UK halving avoidable food waste by 2025 compared to when we started work on this in 2007, saving consumers and Local Authorities billions of pounds,” she said.

Wrap said that the average UK household throws away the equivalent of six meals every week, despite a 21 per cent drop in food waste since 2007.

It calculated that this waste costs £12.5 billion a year, or almost £60 a month to the average family.

Almost half of the 4.2 million tonnes of food wasted in the UK goes straight from cupboards to bin, without making it onto dinner plates.

Goodwin said: “Consumers are seriously worried about the cost of food and how it has increased over recent years. Yet as Wrap’s research shows, we are still wasting millions of tonnes and billions of pounds.

“The UK is leading the way in tackling food waste and the 21 per cent cut is a terrific achievement by millions of people who have taken action, saved money and helped safeguard our natural resources. However, there is so much more to go for and I believe we should be going for it.

“It won't be easy but what a prize if we achieve it. I commit that food waste will remain a top priority for WRAP and we will be pleased to work with those who share my aspiration.'

Parliamentary undersecretary at Defra, Dan Rogerson, said: “Cutting waste will help to build a stronger economy. We will continue to work closely with food retailers and manufacturers to achieve this goal. Everyone has a role to play in reducing food waste and we want to see businesses helping consumers to waste less food.”

The report, ‘Household Food and Drink Waste in the UK’, was published today as an update to Wrap’s 2007 study, which exposed the issue of food waste for the first time.