Food & Drink
‘Hidden scandal’ of food system
Factory farming exposed as ‘world’s biggest cause of food waste’ on World Food Day.
16 October 2025
Data from a new survey from Love Food Hate Waste show that almost two-thirds (64%) of people in the UK agree that some food waste at home is inevitable and that there’s little they can do to avoid it.
When asked why, the key reasons for most relate to food spoilage and expiry dates, the complexity and unpredictability of daily life and issues with cooking and portion control.
According to the survey, 80% believe they waste less food than the national average – but how much food waste does the average UK home really generate?
By the end of Food Waste Action Week (09-15 March), an average household of four will have already thrown away £200 worth of food they could have eaten.
Every year, 4.4 million tonnes of edible food is thrown away from UK homes, generating 16 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. The total cost of food waste is a staggering £17 billion per year which is £1,000 a year for an average household of four.
On average, a person in the UK wastes food equivalent to three meals per week. What we waste as a nation per year would fill Wembley Stadiums eight times over and the Royal Albert Hall 88 times.
This year’s Food Waste Action Week and Love Food Hate Waste campaign coincide with the roll-out of Simpler Recycling in England. From 31 March, approximately four in five homes in England will be able to have food waste collected on a weekly basis and recycled into organic material, to help produce electricity and biomethane gas.
Separate food waste collections will make it more obvious what we’re throwing away; combined with Love Food Hate Waste and Food Waste Action Week campaigning, it’s hoped this will help many more people cut their food waste and save money.
‘The average household of four spends a whopping £1,000 each year on good food that goes in the bin and could have been eaten. Of course, no one is choosing to waste food, which is why this Food Waste Action Week we are highlighting all the ways to ‘Make your food go fuuuuurther’ by giving people all the tips and tricks they need to fight food waste. And with councils now rolling out food waste recycling to people’s homes, any inedible food that does go in the bin can now be recycled. Love Food, Hate Waste!’
CATHERINE DAVID
CEO at Wrap
The latest data show food waste ranks only fifth among people’s food concerns; food prices, the health properties of food, animal welfare and the impact of processed/ultra processed food are more pressing concerns.
When households waste food, they are missing out on many social, economic and environmental benefits.
Using insights from brand new Love Food Hate Waste’s survey, Food Waste Action Week is highlighting how ‘making food go fuuuuurther’ can make many elements of daily life a whole lot easier.
From a financial point of view, it’s the lower cost staples such as bread, potatoes and carrots that are wasted more than expensive foods like pork and fresh chicken, suggesting that price influences how carefully we use and value certain foods.
Over a quarter (27%) of people questioned were classified as high food wasters. Simple tips can help; over-buying can be avoided by checking your stocks before heading to the shops. Scan the fridge, freezer and cupboards for items that need using up – a potato starting to sprout, a bread crust and any bendy carrots can be repurposed into a recipe you’ve already paid for.
When it comes to your time, eating out is on the rise: meals eaten outside the home increased from 18% to 25% from 2024 to 2025. When life gets busy, people often swap cooking from scratch for last-minute takeaways or ready meals, even though there may be plenty of food. These displace meals already in the fridge and have a strong link to high food waste – ironically, a carefully stocked fridge can soon turn to waste when food isn’t used in time.
Instead of reaching for the takeaway app, make Tuesday your weekly ‘fridge freestyle’ night. No shopping, no recipe, no stress – just five minutes rummaging through what you’ve already got and getting creative with some fridge tapas.
We’re often oblivious to the environmental impact of food waste, but were it a country, food waste would be the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world, trailing only China and the United States.
Your food waste caddy is your secret weapon against climate change. Recycling inedible foods such as eggshells and tea bags keeps them out of landfill, where they release harmful methane. Instead, they can be used to produce renewable energy and nutrient-rich biofertiliser for British farms to help grow food for tomorrow’s dinner.
People are worried about what is in their food but are less concerned about throwing food away. The concern about things like pesticides has risen from 23% in 2024 to 29% in 2025, while worry about additives/antibiotics is up from 28% to 32% and concern about GM foods has increased from 19% to 25%.
For a healthy lifestyle, it is recommended to eat five portions of fruit and veg a day – yet fruit and veg often end up in the bin.
To optimise the health benefits of fresh produce even further, leave the peel on. People who waste more food at home often struggle using fresh foods, but you can max out the nutritional value of your food and use every part by not peeling many vegetables and fruits. The skins on potatoes, carrots, parsnips and other veg are packed with fibre, vitamins and flavour. Just give them a quick scrub under the tap and you’re good to go – and you’ll have saved time and boosted nutrition in one move.
The tempo of daily life doesn’t always allow the headspace to think about food waste prevention and Friday is often when all cooking inspiration is depleted and that takeaway app is calling.
If Friday night is takeout night or you’re heading away for the weekend, the freezer is your friend. Why not ‘Race your rider’ – do a quick scan of the fridge while you’re waiting for your delivery to arrive. Products like fish or meat with use by dates can go in the freezer where they’ll stay fresh until you’re ready to use them.
18% of those surveyed are comfortable not using up all the food they buy, which has increased from 11% (2024 versus 2025). This indicates a growing acceptance, or reduced concern, around food waste – but it’s time we got uncomfortable with wasting food.
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