‘Win. Don’t Bin’ – national campaign to reduce food bills gets South Yorkshire backing

They are supporting the ‘Win. Don’t Bin.’ campaign which shows how the correct use and storage of food can provide a second (or third!) meal for free.

An estimated 4.5 million tonnes of edible food are thrown away each year by UK households.

Around 25 per cent of this wasted food is due to cooking, preparing or serving too much - this costs UK households £3.5 billion each year.

‘Win. Don’t Bin.’ aims to give people the knowledge and confidence to use up leftovers and reduce food waste. It also aims to raise awareness of how valuable food is in our lives and how making the most of everything we buy saves money, time and the planet.

Food takes months to grow before being delivered to shops for us to buy and eat. This process uses a lot of water, energy and transport to get it to our plates. Processes that can contribute to climate change.

Campaigners say caring about what we do with that food is vital to protecting not just our finances - but also the health of the planet.

Abi Reid is Community Education Liaison Officer based at the BDR Waste Treatment Facility, the award-winning waste treatment facility at Manvers which diverts 97 per cent of Barnsley, Doncaster, and Rotherham household waste from landfill.

“We all want to save time and money and one way we can do that is by making our food go further,” said Abi.

“We’re really proud to be supporting Food Waste Action Week again this year, this is a great campaign to celebrate life’s little wins and make the most of the food that we have.”

The ‘Win. Don’t Bin.’ promotion has been organised by the charity WRAP as part of its annual Food Waste Action Week which this year runs from 6-12 March.

Simple steps to help reduce food waste:

 If any food is coming up to its use by date and you don't need it straight away put it in the

freezer for another day.

 Eat up your leftovers the next day, you can make them into a different meal, for example

extra potatoes can be fried the next day.

 Avoid having piles of fresh food which won't be eaten before it goes off.

 Storing fresh fruit, vegetables and salad in the fridge can make them stay fresher for longer

(except onions, bananas and whole pineapples).

For more information about how you could save money on your food bills check out the Waste Less South Yorkshire website at www.wasteless-sy.co.uk and their social media.

Throughout the campaign week they will be posting fun and informative content and maybe even a competition or two, so there’s even more chance you could feel like a winner!

Get involved and find out how you can save both time and money. Take the quiz by visiting the website lovefoodhatewaste.com/fwaw