Image: Morrisons
Morrisons has launched a new discount scheme that allows customers to buy unsold food at a cheaper rate in a bid to reduce food wastage.
Morrisons has partnered with the Too Good to Go app making it the first supermarket in the UK to come up with a strategy that not only helps customers on a budget but also provides another opportunity to dispense food that might otherwise be thrashed.
The food box priced at £3.09 will contain at least £10 worth of products such as fruit and veggies, bakery and deli items all of which have passed the best-before date but are still good to eat.
Customers can avail this service in all 494 supermarkets nationwide from Tuesday, November 26th.
The supermarket aims to dispense 350,000 food boxes through this scheme in 2020. According to Morrisons’ this plan can help reduce 882 tonnes of CO2 emissions- equivalent of driving from London to Edinburgh 5,351 times.
According to WRAP, a leading UK sustainability watchdog, Britain discards over 10 million tonnes of food worth around £20 billion and Morrisons is leading the way by pledging to reduce its food waste by 50% by 2030.
Too good to go
Customers looking to purchase these discounted boxes can download the Too Good To Go app for free and browse nearby Morrisons stores with food available. After paying for the boxes through the app, they can collect it from their selected store at a specified ‘collection window’ time.
Jayne Wall, Market Street Director at Morrisons, said: “We are using technology to help us reduce food waste and to help more people afford to eat well.
“It will also mean we waste less food this Christmas as it will find a home for products that can’t be sold after the festive period.”
The Too Good to Go company has already tied up with food businesses such as Planet Organic, Caffe Nero and YO! (formerly YO! Sushi) to distribute unsold products.
According to the organisation, it has saved more than 1 million meals and prevented 2.5 million kg of CO2 emissions.
Sophie Trueman, head of business development at Too Good to Go told The Independent:
“The scale of Too Good To Go and Morrisons working together means that … collaboration is key to tackling the global food waste issue.
“Food waste is contributing to eight per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
“This is a senseless problem that can be solved by simply eating the food we produce, rather than throwing it in the bin,” she continued.
“By ensuring that fighting food waste is simple, accessible and fun, together we can inspire and empower everyone to take small actions that collectively make a huge impact.”
What else can supermarkets do to reduce food wastage? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!