The UK has a food waste problem – and it’s beyond scandalous

In a country grappling with spiralling living costs, a rising tide of hunger, and families left counting pennies, you’d think that perfectly edible food would never be wasted. Yet, the UK is a nation that throws away 10.7 million tonnes of food each year. To put that in perspective, that’s enough to fill Wembley Stadium – ten times.

This isn’t just a moral failure – it’s an environmental catastrophe; while the planet warms, we throw away enough food to account for roughly 8-10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

But what makes this situation truly enraging is that a significant portion of that waste – around 40 per cent – is perfectly rescuable. We’re not just talking about leftovers from households, but significant quantities of edible food from farms, supermarkets, and food suppliers.

In February, former prime minister Rishi Sunak finally acknowledged the scale of this problem, unveiling a £15m Farm Gate Food Waste fund – a win after a hard-fought campaign by food redistribution charities like The Felix Project, FareShare, and others.

The money was poised to prevent thousands of tonnes of food from going to waste on UK farms – food that farmers had toiled over, food that should have nourished hungry families. But before the ink was dry, political games began. With an election looming, the fund was postponed and now hangs in limbo, awaiting a decision in the Treasury’s upcoming Budget.

The absurdity of this waste is staggering, especially when you consider the human cost. A 2022 report from WWF [the World Wide Fund for Nature] revealed that around 3 million tonnes of edible food is lost before it even leaves UK farms. For farmers, this is the final insult – after months of nurturing crops, they’re forced to plough perfectly good food back into the ground or send it for anaerobic digestion. Why? Because the infrastructure to redistribute it is starved of funding.

Meanwhile, across the country, food insecurity is exploding. We recently conducted a survey in London and discovered that over half of working families had turned to food banks in the last year. An estimated 182,000 households have less than £3 a day to spend on food – less than what many of us spend on a cup of coffee. Across the UK, the Trussell Trust distributed a shocking 3.1 million food parcels last year – a grim new record.

As the CEO of The Felix Project, I have the privilege of leading London’s largest food redistribution charity. Last year, we rescued enough food to provide the equivalent of 32 million meals – and this year we’re set to distribute even more.

But this is only scratching the surface. Demand is skyrocketing, and without the necessary support, many more will go hungry while good food goes to waste.

This £15m fund, if released, could unlock around 25,000 tonnes of food – enough for 60 million meals, with a market value of £100m. It’s a small price to pay for such immense benefit.

Politicians like Keir Starmer and [environment secretary] Steve Reed talk about building a circular economy, about reducing waste, about doing better – well, here’s their chance.

The cost of this fund is a rounding error in the context of the UK farming budget. But the impact? It’s immeasurable. This isn’t just about environmental sustainability – it’s about feeding hungry children, supporting hard-hit families, and doing what’s right.

In a nation as wealthy as ours, wasting food while millions go hungry is more than a crisis; it’s a scandal. And it’s one we can and must fix. Let’s hope our leaders have the courage to act before it’s too late.

Charlotte Hill is the CEO of The Felix Project, a food redistribution charity based in London