Epsilon Open Archive

Food that is discarded instead of being consumed not only represent lost resources and economic value but leads to that significantly more food is produced than what is ultimately marketed and consumed. The losses along the food chain varies depending on the foodstuff, however it is estimated that 10-50 percent is lost before consumption. Hence, reducing waste would have major environmental implications owing to that less resources are needed to supply the same amount of food consumed.

In this report we suggest possibilities for how food retailers may reduce their food waste and improve profits. Storekeepers and other actors share their experiences and knowledge concerning reduction of food waste. The measures range from preventing food from being wasted to measures that utilize the edible foodstuffs that are not sold in the store as a resource for catering instead of being wasted. The stores that are interviewed in this report have been successful in reducing their food waste using different measures. By working proactively and combining different measures, some stores waste as little as 0.3 percent of their turnover. Readers should note that there are other stores and chains of stores that work in similar way and with similar experiences.

In this report we use the definition of food waste presented by the ”Samverkansgruppen för Minskat Matavfall” (The Network for the Reduction of Food Waste, including authorities, organisations and businesses working within the field), that food waste is food that could have been consumed if handled differently. In English literature this is sometimes referred to as avoidable food waste.

To the food store reduced food waste constitutes a possibility to enhance the profits by for instance reduced waste disposal costs. Moreover, less waste means that the store needs to handle lesser amounts of food on a continuous basis which may also contribute to reduced costs for labour and purchasing goods. If the different measures taken to reduce food waste are communicated to the customers they may increase the store´s goodwill as regards environment and ethics.

There are several ways to reduce retail food waste. The secret often lies in the combination of measures and that the issue of food waste reduction is given high priority throughout the business organisation. The interviewees note the importance of thought through working routines and staff committment. A useful tool for getting commitment is to visualize the amounts wasted.
We have identified the following measures for retailers to consider in order to reduce the amount of food waste while also avoiding displacing waste to other actors of the food chain:

• Tidiness and order in the storage space and in the sales area

• Routines for ordering and follow-up of sales

• Recording the waste and establish quantitative goals for waste reduction

• Display cabinets with doors for fruits and vegetables

• Trimming of fruit and vegetables beyond normal product care, and sellling the packaged trimmed products

• Use of foodstuffs at risk of being wasted to produce ready to eat meals

• Measures to raise awareness, including communication with customers

• Review amounts and types of food packaging and information displayed on packaging

• Review the design and use of volume discounts

• Displaying and other measures for exposure of foodstuffs to enhance product throughput and waste reduction

• Reconsider the design and use of price reduction of foodstuffs approaching their best before dates or use-by dates

• Donate surplus food to non-profit aid organizations and charity

• Donate or sell food that risk becoming waste to be used as animal feeds

The interviewees were asked if their efforts to reduce food waste require additional work. Most note that once routines were established, the measures to reduce waste require less or the same amount of work as before. Several of the respondents note that waste reduction is a process where improvements can be made continuously. All respondents express that it feels wrong to discard food, thus it feels good to take measures.

We recommend retailers and food industry to start a dialogue, together with consumer representatives, in order to achieve a more balanced view on the best before date. This may reduce food waste considerably in the long term.
We also see a need for an information campaign regarding quality attributes of foodstuffs and how the consumer may assess the quality of different products.

We recommend that the Swedish National Food Administration in collaboration with retailers and food industry develop a clear guide on how food stores can proceed when donating food. There is also need for guidance to receiving organisations on how to handle donated food. Moreover we recommend developing guidance for the use of food that otherwise will be wasted as animal feed.

One of the interviewees recalled the challenges for a food store and a restaurant to work together on foodstuffs approaching the best before date. The store was to provide freezing and cold storage until the restaurant could prepare the food. This procedure would have provided an opportunity for waste reduction, but the food regulations do not permit this. In our opinion there is reason for examining regulations and guidelines with the aim to avoid food waste.