Fruit and vegetables make up 40% of the third of the food we buy (6.7 million tonnes) that gets thrown out from UK homes annually, according to new research.

Latest figures from Love Food Hate Waste, WRAP’s (Waste & Resources Action Programme) campaign to tackle domestic food waste, show that UK households bin nearly £3 billion worth of uneaten fruit and vegetables each year. The top five fruit & vegetables which get binned without even being touched are apples, potatoes, bananas, tomatoes and oranges.

In response to these findings, WRAP has been leading a team including Sainsbury’s, to examine the reasons behind food waste and what can be done about it. According to WRAP "the study shows the main reason why we throw so much out is because we simply do not eat it before it goes off, and we could be making the problem worse, by not storing fruit and vegetables in the best place once we bring it home from the shops."

Dr Liz Goodwin, WRAP Chief Executive comments: “These dramatic figures show that although we are all keen to do the right thing buying plenty of fruit and vegetables, the benefit is clearly being lost when food gets thrown out untouched”.

In light of this research Sainsbury’s are advising shoppers to store their loose fruit and vegetables in the fridge. WRAP is providing detailed tips on storing different types of fruit and vegetables at http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com.


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