A staggering amount of food is wasted every year and in an effort to try and alleviate some of what's getting thrown away, the biggest retailer in the UK has recently announced their plans to scrap their best-before labels.
Tesco has asserted that it is their goal to drastically eliminate food waste from their business operations and in an effort to try and achieve their goal they will be dropping the best-before label from roughly 70 different products.
In the UK it's estimated that the average home throws away at least $600 or more worth of food every year.
As far as the most wasted foods, vegetables and fruit, they will be removing the confusing best-before label from many of those items.
This is quite the turnaround from only a few months ago when UK food regulators had expressed the possibility that food companies and manufacturers etc, would be trying to increase the use of best before dates to try and reduce food waste and alleviate some of the confusion of people who are buying those products.
A variety of possible solutions have been employed to try and cut back on the waste. There are a growing number of businesses that are dedicated to cutting waste and offering food that is close to expiring at a discounted rate, rather than simply throwing it out. There are also a myriad of food sharing apps that help people to locate that sort of food sale opportunity. We now have smart fridges that can let you know what you've already bought, so that you don't purchase what you might already have, and more.
One previous study that examined U.S. consumer habits with regard to wasting food, discovered that many people find it difficult to reduce their own food waste and feel that they are too busy to try and make changes. Another study, which was investigating attitudes about food waste, uncovered that more people are bothered by a leaky faucet than they are by the prospect of throwing away some food.
There are many who are dedicated to reversing the trend, like Tesco, and trying to reduce some of the waste however. Changes are being made at various levels of the supply chain. A great deal of producers and retailers etc, have been working to try and make creative adjustments to their operations in an effort to reduce food waste and help people make better choices on that front.
Will the drop of best-before labels have the desired impact they're looking for, in the amount of food being wasted? It's unlikely, unless that alone contributes to a change in consumer responsibility; if they adjust their approach to what they eat or throw away based on the new effort by Tesco to hopefully make that decision easier for them with less label confusion.
Tesco has made their plans well-known, that at some point they hope that there will be no food that is safe for human consumption going to waste at any of their retail operations. But they still have some work to do.
Pics:
Pixabay
Sources:
https://www.environmentalleader.com/2018/05/tesco-misses-food-waste/
https://steemit.com/food/@doitvoluntarily/food-companies-and-manufacturers-in-uk-looking-to-simplify-food-labels
https://www.foodnavigator.com/Article/2017/12/01/UK-takes-on-food-waste-with-fresh-labelling-guidance
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/05/30/why-americans-waste-so-much-food/355864001/
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/how-the-uks-household-food-waste-problem-is-getting-worse-a7520171.html
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