Food waste in numbers
45% of fruit and vegetables produced are wasted.
95-115 kg of food is wasted by each person in Europe and North America every year.
2030 is the year by which the European Parliament has voted to halve food waste.
Fight food waste at home
Chop soft herbs that are past their best into an ice cube tray filled with water and add to soups and stews, instead of throwing them out.
Grate stale bread into sandwich bags and freeze for instant breadcrumbs.
Use up overripe bananas by making banana bread or cookies.
One year on, see how a local juice company saves imperfect fruit and veg from being thrown away
Juice brand, Get Wonky, has rescued 281 tons of fruit and veg by using imperfect produce in their juices.
The award-winning company from Cardiff announced the milestone earlier this month.
One year on, the eco-conscious brand has more than doubled their impact of rescuing 85 tons of surplus food in November 2017.
The duo behind Get Wonky, Karina Sudenyte and Maciek Kaprzyck, are still on their mission to save 3000 tons of misshapen produce in the next two years.
“Over the next five years, we are planning to donate one million bottles to charities that help families all around the UK” said Karina, co-founder of Get Wonky, “to reach our goals, we must spread the message about food waste to as many people as possible.”
Get Wonky’s waste-not-want-not message comes at a crisis point for the UK – one third of food in the UK is wasted or lost, which equates to 1.3 billion tons of waste, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations.
Karina and Maciek tackle food waste at the beginning of the chain by working with farmers who aren’t able to sell their wonky produce elsewhere.
Each bottle of juice saves at least two pieces of surplus apples and is made of recycled glass.
The company is planning to expand beyond the UK to tackle our global problem with waste, Karina said, “We will launch new branding in a few weeks time which means we will be ready to supply around Europe.”
More locally, Get Wonky supplies cafes such as Kemi’s and Little Man Coffee with their juices in an effort to help Cardiff’s hospitality scene become more sustainable.
“We really love GetWonky Juices and their ethos and determination to reduce food waste” said Patrick Nevins, director of Kemi’s in Pontcanna.
Awareness around food waste is growing among business owners and consumers, which has seen a boom for the entrepreneurs.
Food waste in numbers
45% of fruit and vegetables produced are wasted.
95-115 kg of food is wasted by each person in Europe and North America every year.
2030 is the year by which the European Parliament has voted to halve food waste.
Fight food waste at home
Chop soft herbs that are past their best into an ice cube tray filled with water and add to soups and stews, instead of throwing them out.
Grate stale bread into sandwich bags and freeze for instant breadcrumbs.
Use up overripe bananas by making banana bread or cookies.