A report just released by electronics retailer AO.com has revealed that Brits bin £35,000 worth of freezable essential food items in their lifetime – equivalent to £450 a year.
Common, easy-to-freeze items like bread, fruit and vegetables are being tossed out because of sell-by dates, the data found, with Brits binning a month’s worth of food each year.
The survey of more than 3,000 respondents revealed that the average Brit spends £85.72 on their weekly grocery shop – only to throw away 10% of the items.
It is hoped the shocking total figure – higher than the average UK salary – will raise awareness of how to store food and reduce waste. It comes in the same week as research from The Trussell Trust reports that two-thirds of working families on universal credit are now struggling to afford food and energy.
Essential groceries such as bread, vegetables and fruit were listed as the most likely items to end up in the bin. Fruit and veg alone totalled £272.48 a year, topping the list, while breads amounted to £72.80 and milk £33.80. Other items in the top ten of offenders included meat, fish, potatoes and cheese.
Commenting on the findings, Sarah Heap, food storage expert at AO.com, said: “In the wake of the cost-of-living crisis, the findings that Brits are binning the equivalent of a month’s worth of food every year is really shocking. Many of the essential food items ending up in the bin could actually be saved.”
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