Households produce around 70% of the UK’s 9.5 million tonnes of food waste every year. To tackle this Nadiya will ask Brits to take part in the Food Waste Action Week Challenge. She will spearhead a week of activities offering tips and tricks to reduce your food waste.
Nadiya commented: “Being at home more this last year has given many of us – including myself – an opportunity to reassess our relationship with cooking. Most of us don’t realise it, but wasting food is a major contributor to climate change. And it isn’t just the leftovers on our plate to consider but the many resources that go into producing our food, like water and land.
“If we each make small changes we’d dramatically reduce the amount of food that ends up in the bin, and really can make a difference. From avoiding buying or preparing too much to storing food correctly, Food Waste Action Week is about helping people make the most of their food, and through our actions – help protect our planet.”
Research by WRAP discovered that while 81% of people in the UK are concerned about climate change less than a third (32%) see a clear link between it and food waste.
Food Waste Action Week aims to empower and inspire people to make simple changes in how they manage their food.
Marcus Gover, chief executive of Wrap, said: “We must act, fast. Wasting food has a huge contribution to global emissions but is often overlooked or ignored. We are so used to wasting food that we’ve forgotten its value, and the cost that feeding our growing global population has on the natural world.
“Food Waste Action Week is about empowering everyone to act because like it or not, we in our homes are the most significant part of the problem. So, it’s down to us all to be part of the solution too, and this is one environmental issue that we can all tackle, and with minimum effort.”
Around 30% of global greenhouse gases come from producing our food, more than all commercial flights combined. If food waste was an independent country, it would have the third-biggest carbon footprint after the USA and China.
Every day 4.4 million potatoes go to waste in UK homes. If we all stopped wasting these potatoes it could do the same for greenhouse gas emissions as planting 5.4 million trees per year.
Defra Environment Minister Rebecca Pow, added: “Cutting food waste is not just about saving money. It is a vital part of the work we are doing to tackle climate change and protect our precious environment.
“Far too much food is thrown away, but we can take action to address this. Food Waste Action Week is a key opportunity to bring the whole food supply chain together, from farm to fork, to tackle this important issue.”