Asda customers are more concerned about the environment than their own personal health, as they look to reduce food waste amid the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.
According to data from Asda’s Pulse of the Nation survey ahead of Food Waste Action Week, two thirds of its customers (64%) are worried about the environment, with just 49% concerned about their own health.
Some 88% of shoppers at the big 4 grocer said that reducing their food waste is important to them, with data from climate change NGO Wrap showing that over 70% of food waste occurs in the home, costing the average family around £700 a year.
This is particularly important, given that 9 in 10 customers in the survey said they are particularly concerned about the cost of living.
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The supermarket is helping customers in a number of other ways combat food waste, recently removing Best Before dates on almost 330 of its fresh fruit & vegetable products to encourage customers to decide for themselves if the food is edible.
Asda has also produced a dedicated page on its website with hints and tips on how to prevent food waste, including a number of recipes using leftovers.
“It is clear our customers care a lot about the environment and want to know ways that they can help out and reduce their own carbon footprint,” senior manager of zero waste at Asda, Karen Todd said.
“Our job is to do what we can to make food waste reduction as simple as possible whilst doing all we can to reduce our own.”
She added: “Food Waste Action Week will help us spread the word the importance of reducing food waste to not only help the planet, but customer’s wallets as well.”
Campaign manager of Love Food Hate Waste, Jackie Bailey commented: “For this year’s Food Waste Action Week, we’re encouraging the nation to follow ‘Win. Don’t Bin’ and highlighting the very real benefits that using up your uneaten food can have on your pockets, your personal time and the planet.
“It is great to see Asda supporting their customers in the fight against food waste with this new webpage. At a time of rising food prices, tackling food waste at home is one way we can all make a difference – and help save money,” Bailey said.
It comes as Asda, Lidl and Morrisons have begun to lessen the current purchase limits across select fruit and vegetables as supply chain issues start to ease.
