Food Waste
As a major food retailer, we are determined to do whatever we can to reduce food waste, right across the value chain.
Reducing Food Waste
At Asda we hate waste of any kind, so reducing food waste is one of our strategic priorities. We focus on three areas: reduction, redistribution and repurpose.
Food loss and waste can happen at every stage of the supply chain and as a large retailer we recognise the vital role we play in addressing this issue. Reducing food waste can lower greenhouse gas emissions from food production, transportation and decomposition, and it can also save water, land and energy that are otherwise used to produce food that is never consumed.
The reasons for food waste occurring are complex, based on things like forecasting, weather, sales, types of products left unsold and redistribution routes.
- Household Food WasteWe continue to look at where we can help reduce customer waste, in 2022, we removed best before dates on almost 250 fresh fruit and vegetable products to help customers reduce food waste in the home and save money and in 2023 went further by changing the use by dates on over half of our own brand yoghurts to a best before date, to reduce edible yoghurt thrown away each year (by all retailers).
- Operational Food WasteBalancing product availability with minimising waste is a constant challenge impacted by extreme weather and changing customer demands.
- Supply Chain Food WasteIn any food supply chain, waste will occur through the production, processing, distribution and presentation of the food at the shelf edge. In 2022 we listened to our suppliers who asked for more options for redistributing surplus own label products and increased redistribution of surplus food by partnering with more charities across the UK.
Technological waste-busting advances
The rise in innovative solutions to tackle reducing food waste has led us to two impressive new waste-busting resources: Olio and Too Good To Go.
We have partnered with Olio, which connects Olio’s food waste heroes with their local Asda stores, who in turn share the food with their community free of charge. The addition of Olio as a food redistribution partner will see over 680 donation slots added to Asda’s back of store donation scheme, helping stores to redistribute food where charities aren’t available to collect and ensuring any surplus food can be donated to those in need. It’s hoped this new partnership will double the amount of food redistributed through the back of store scheme.
Too Good To go
Asda is extending its partnership with Too Good To Go, which will see the food waste platform operating across nearly 1000 sites. This partnership reinforces our commitment to redistributing surplus food.
Too Good To Go offers any surplus, but still edible, food to app users. The digital platform will now be offered from nearly 1000 sites, including Asda supermarket and Asda Express stores as well as foodservice sites such as Leon, Greggs, Sbarro and Subway.
Through the partnership, Asda supermarket customers will be able to purchase surplus stock at less than a third of the foods original price. As part of a ‘Surprise Bag’, a variety of food items will be available, including bakery products, chilled items, ready meals, food to go, prepared fruit or salads, or produce with use-by dates such as diary, meat, fish or poultry.
To collect the Surprise Bags, customers can search for a nearby Asda store in the Too Good To Go app. Users can also select when they wish to pick up their bag.
FareShare and Asda celebrating 10 years in partnership
We marked 10 years of continued support of FareShare in 2023. In that time, we have provided 16,000 tonnes of surplus food from our stores and depots, the equivalent of over 30 million* meals, as well as £13 million in donations to increase and improve the charities’ logistics capabilities. This food has since been redistributed by FareShare to their network of over 8,500 charities and community groups in the process.
* 30m meals of surplus food from its Asda store and depots
King Charles III Charitable Fund
We are proud to be a member of the Coronation Food Project, Coordinated by King Charles III Charitable Fund. The Project seeks to bridge the gap between food waste and food need across all four nations of the United Kingdom, aiming to save more surplus food, improve distribution networks, and support the sector and innovative food rescue initiatives. We donated £1 million Christmas dinners during the festive season in 2023.
In proud partnership with:-