Sainsbury’s has come up with a novel way to get people to take their food waste seriously – by commissioning a study from YouGov to assess the value of the food people buy but don’t eat. The study shows that on average people think they throw away around £30 a month in food, but the real figure is closer to £60 a month. It’s a bit of a wake-up call when you add that up over a year, and the hope is that it will encourage people to be more careful about their waste. But it’s a shame that we don’t care about our food enough in the first place, not to waste it…

Sainsbury’s has also partnered with the town of Swadlincote on a range of other measures aimed at householders. They’re giving out fridge thermometers so people can ensure their fridge is at its optimum temperature (maybe not really a critical priority) and trialling a ‘leftovers label’ which counts down to the use-by-date. Evidence has shown that sell-by-dates cause most people to needlessly throw away a huge amount of food, so a ‘leftover label’ would probably function in a similar way.

Although it’s good to see Sainsbury’s getting serious with waste, there might be something a little suspect in their focus on householders, perhaps pointing the finger at them as a way to deflect attention away from the supermarket’s own waste?

Sainsbury’s has an environmental policy that includes waste management and they’ve invested in anaerobic digesters, so their food waste generates energy at least. All this gives a nice finish on their waste profile. However, Sainsbury’s HQ was Stop the Rot’s first point of call to deliver their petition on cutting supply chain waste, where supermarkets are among the worst offenders. Stop the Rot’s campaign calls attention to the 7 million tonnes of food wasted before it ever reaches the checkout. Sainsbury’s and the other big four supermarkets have a long way to go in cleaning-up practices which generate vast amounts of waste in food produced but not consumed because of cancelled orders and imperfect fruit and vegetables.

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The Healthier Catering Commitment (HCC) for London was launched in March 2012.  It is a voluntary scheme for food businesses developed by the Association of London Environmental Health Managers and the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health.

The Good Food in Greenwich network supports development of a local healthy and sustainable food environment and the HCC scheme comes under this initiative.

In the Royal Borough of Greenwich, the Council’s Environmental Health Department works in partnership with Public Health and the Greenwich Co-operative Development Agency(GCDA) to deliver the scheme.

The scheme is designed to support fast food or café businesses to help them make simple and affordable changes to the food they sell to make it healthier for you.

There is link between what we eat and our health

• Too much salt in our diet can cause high blood pressure, which increases risk of

heart disease and stroke.

• Too much fat and sugar in the diet increases risk of being overweight, which

increases risk of diabetes and heart disease.

• Fruit and vegetables help protect against heart disease and cancer.
• Too many sugary foods also increases the risk of tooth decay

People are increasingly eating outside of the home.  In surveys, people say:

• They want healthier choices on the menu when they are eating outside the home
• It is the responsibility of the caterer to provide healthier choice
• They want to see more grilled and vegetarian options on the menu

When a food business signs up to the HCC scheme, it commits to improving the food they sell by making small changes, such as:

• changing the oil they cook with to healthier alternatives
• heating oil to correct temperature and regularly replacing used cooking oil with fresh cooking oil. This can help chips and other fried foods soak up less fat during the cooking process
• offering some healthy options (for example, lower sugar drinks and snacks); and
• making smaller portions available on request.

GCDA delivers the HCC scheme across Greenwich and andassesses businesses interested in taking part in this scheme and to help them  achieve  the free HCC award

How can I tell which fast food business is participating on this scheme?

Food businesses who adopt the scheme display the Healthier Catering Commitment logo on their business windows, doors or walls.  So look out for this sign when you are next visiting a fast food outlet or café in your area

 Signing-up to HCC

Businesses with a 3, 4 or 5 Food Hygiene Rating Score ,wishing to join the HCC scheme, are assessed and given advice on how to meet at least 8 qualifying criteria.

Where should I go to find out more about the Healthier Catering Commitment scheme?

If you are an eligible fast food or café  business or a local resident  in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and are interested in finding out more about the HCC scheme  then contact GCDA  on 0208 269 4880 and speak to Livia.

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