Food waste and solutions

Food waste is a major crisis that influences UK food security and its financial performance. According to the Houses of Commons (2017), 10 millions tonnes of food and drink is wasted each year in the UK which can be avoided up to 60 per cent.

The chart above demonstrated that 71% of food waste came from the UK households. Simultaneously, the hospitality and foodservice (HaFS) sector contributed 9% and 17% from manufacturing, suppliers. In average, one person will lose £200 a year for food waste and with the UK population, it is likely to become higher than the £13 billion (Houses of Commons, 2017). As mentioned, food waste is damaging the level of food security in the UK. Hence, it is possible to manage food security through reducing food waste.

First of all, it is critical to understand the source of food waste before recommending solutions. A study by the Houses of Commons (2017) demonstrated the main causes of food waste are coming from storage failure, over-preparation and excessive serving portions. These factors are related to consumers and employees’ behaviour psychology which can be educated through engagement and training to increase awareness of environmental impact from food waste (Quested et al., 2011).

Within the household segment, a research study by Quested et al., (2011) showed that UK consumers have relatively low awareness in how food waste is generated at home and only 39 per cent of UK population believe that throwing away less food will reduce the impact on climate change. Thus, by improving consumers’ awareness, it is possible to reduce food waste from households significantly. For instance, the consumer campaign “Love Food Hate Waste” from WRAP in 2007 has engaged consumers with food waste issues (Quested et al., 2011). The campaign provided methods to reduce food waste while engaging consumers in practising. This UK-wide campaign has created a 15 per cent reduction in food waste and 14 per cent decreased of avoidable food waste (WRAP, no date). By increasing consumers’ awareness, the UK government is altering consumers’ behaviour in purchasing, managing their food which will result in less food waste.

In the hospitality industry, food products can be wasted in any business’ operation stage. From supply chain, inappropriate packaging, poor handling and unable to forecast demand can cause food waste (Mena et a., 2011). Moreover, 34 per cent of food waste came from consumer plates in 2018 WRAP's research (WRAP, 2020). Hence, by reducing the portion serving size and improve performance management, food waste in the hospitality and food service (HaFS) can be avoided. According to WRAP’s suggestion (2020), HaFS businesses should apply a quality management system where they can implement a standard operating procedure to minimise waste product for all key processes. This will allow the business to monitor and control waste by working closely with the supply chain as well as other areas. Furthermore, WRAP stated that staff behaviour is a key influence on food waste generation (WRAP, 2013). Therefore, staff training should cover areas such as increasing awareness of food storage, handling and correct portioning so food will not be wasted. Hence, an effective performance management system can help HaFS businesses to reduce food waste thus and reduce costs.

So, by reducing food waste, hospitality businesses are likely to create a positive impact on their operational costs and profitability. Moreover, less food waste will result in higher food accessibility and availability which can improve UK food security. Therefore, food was is an essential factor in improving UK financial performance as well as food security.

References:

Houses of Commons (2017) Food Waste in England. Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee. Report no. 8. [Online] [Accessed on 20th October 2020] https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201617/cmselect/cmenvfru/429/429.pdf

Mena, C., Adenso-Diaz, B. and Yurt, O. (2011) "The causes of food waste in the supplier-retailer interface: Evidences from the UK and Spain". Resource, Conservation and Recycling 55, 648-658. [Online] DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2010.09.006

Quested, T. E., Parry, A. D., Easteal, S. and Swannell, E. (2011) "Food and drink waste from households in the UK". Nutrition Bulletin 36(4). [Online] DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-3010.2011.01924.x

The Waste and Resources Action Programme (2013) Overview of Waste in the UK Hospitality and Food Service. [Online] [Accessed on 20th October 2020] https://www.wrap.org.uk/sites/files/wrap/Overview%20of%20Waste%20in%20the%20UK%20Hospitality%20and%20Food%20Service%20Sector%20FINAL.pdf

The Waste and Resources Action Programme (2020) Reduce waste by improving systems and processes. [Online] [Accessed on 20th October 2020] https://www.wrap.org.uk/content/reduce-waste-improving-systems-and-processes

The Waste and Resources Action Programme (no date) The impact of Love Food Hate Waste. [Onlin] [Accessed on 20th October 2020] https://www.wrap.org.uk/sites/files/wrap/West%20London%20LFHW%20Impact%20case%20study_0.pdf

The Waste and Resources Action Programme (2020) Overview of waste in the hospitality and food service sector. [Online] [Accessed on 20th October 2020] https://www.wrap.org.uk/content/overview-waste-hospitality-and-food-service-sector#:~:text=On%20average%2021%25%20of%20food,disposable%20kitchen%20paper%20and%20newspapers.