Stop Food Waste Day 2026
Stop Food Waste Day is the largest single day of action in the fight against food waste globally. This year, it is taking place on 29th April. The idea of the day is to draw attention to the problem of food waste, educate and raise awareness, and give people ideas to change their habits if they would like.
What is food waste?
Food waste is when food that was made for us to eat is thrown away. It includes things we can’t eat such as tea bags or egg shell, but a lot of the food that is thrown away is edible. This can happen during production and transport; in supermarkets shops and restaurants; or at home:
- Production: Food might be diseased or get damaged and so is thrown away immediately
- Transport: Transport might be too slow and food will rot before it reaches shops
- Supermarkets and shops: Because people don’t like to buy oddly shaped fruit or vegetables, even though they are good to eat, supermarkets will reject them
- Households: People often buy too much food, or don’t have a plan of how they will use their food, so it will often go bad before they have a chance to use it
Why should I care about food waste?
Impact on our environment: Food waste contributes to climate change. When it breaks down at landfill, it releases greenhouse gases like methane. Good also requires land, energy, water, etc. to produce. If the food is wasted, this means we have created carbon emissions that could have been avoided.
Fighting food poverty: Globally, about a third of the food we produce goes to waste. In the UK, the food we waste each year is enough to feed 30 million people. If we can use the food we produce more smartly, and redistribute more of our surplus food, then we can better support people experiencing food poverty.
Save yourself money: Each year, the average UK household spends £470 on food that ends up in the bin. If you need help saving money, this could be one way to do it, or it could give you that little bit extra in your pocket
How can you reduce your food waste?
- Plan your meals and write a shopping list: Often people throw things away because they buy too much when they go shopping. To avoid this, it is better to make a meal plan. Make a list of meals you want to have and what ingredients you already have to make them. Then, make a shopping list with the ingredients you still need to buy. By doing this, you will avoid buying things you don’t need or things you already have. This will make it less likely that you will need to throw things away because you won’t have too much food.
- Use your freezer: Making good use of your freezer can help avoid food waste. Freeze extra portions if you make a big batch of food or have leftovers to enjoy at a later date. You could also buy frozen vegetables rather than fresh, particularly if you find your fresh vegetables often go to waste. Frozen vegetables are also pre-chopped which will save some time when cooking.
- Get Creative: It can be fun to use your leftovers or other ingredients that might go to waste to cook tasty new recipes. If you are a confident cook, you can try and whip something up yourself. Otherwise there are many websites out there that can help. Search for recipes with a specific ingredient you have leftover. Maybe you’ll find a new favourite dish to add to your regular meals!
