The UK produces around 9.5 million tonnes of food waste each year according to WRAP, costing over £19 billion pounds.
It’s thought that 6.4 million tonnes of the food we waste could actually be eaten. This is the equivalent of more than 15 billion meals – enough to feed everyone in the UK 3 meals a day for 74 days!
Thankfully, there’s plenty we can all do to help reduce food waste, including rescuing food from shops, restaurants and even other people to save it going in the bin.
These three apps can help you find cheap, if not free food in your area, and save all sorts of goodies from going to waste:
Olio is an app designed to save food from going to waste in your area. You can use it to find food that’s being given away or advertise food you don’t need. For example, if you’re going on holiday and don’t want to throw food away, you can list it on Olio.
Companies also use Olio, including Tesco and Pret A Manger. They distribute their surplus food at the end of the day. You can get involved in this by becoming a Food Waste Hero on Olio.
You can use the Too Good To Go app to buy food at a low cost. It works with businesses like restaurants, supermarkets, and hotels to reduce food waste and bring it to the consumer. At the end of each day, food that's still perfectly good but would otherwise go to waste is bagged up for sale at reduced prices. Sometimes, food will be on sale for less than half its usual price.
Some of the bags get reserved quickly (so you'll need to be on the ball) and you can’t find out exactly what’s in the bags beforehand - although you’re given an idea of what to expect.
Businesses using this app include Frankie and Benny’s, Costa, Greggs, and Caffe Nero.
Karma is a food rescue app, founded in Sweden in 2016. It’s similar to Too Good To Go in that companies use it to sell off their surplus food at reduced prices, but with Karma, you’re able to see what you’re buying first. Bear in mind, in the UK, this app is currently only available in a handful of places including Brighton, Bristol, Glasgow, Leeds, and Liverpool.
Reduce your own food waste at home with our tips, or try batch cooking for another way to keep your waste down and save money.
Disclaimer: We make every effort to ensure that content is correct at the time of publication. Please note that information published on this website does not constitute financial advice, and we aren’t responsible for the content of any external sites.
Helen is a personal finance editor who’s spent 11 years (and counting!) in the finance industry. She creates content on everything money with the goal of getting people thinking – and talking – about their finances in ways they may not have done before.
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