Over the last year the issue of food waste has become more and more visible. Selfridges recently dedicated a season to chefs who highlight the culinary potential of food normally wasted. Skye Gyngell will open a pop up restaurant, called Table, at Somerset House (from 17-21 May) that will showcase a 'Scratch' menu designed to combat food waste. But it's not just about top notch chefs using their loaf more sustainably.
Food waste costs the average person in the UK £200 every year. We throw away a whopping 19% of food we buy, which adds up to 7 million tonnes per annum according to campaigners Love Food Hate Waste. Globally, one third of all food produced is wasted, 1.3 billion tonnes - that's enough to feed three billion people, say environmental organisation Feedback.
But don't get overwhelmed, aside from planning your food shopping better, there are some delicious ways to help tackle the issue that anyone can get involved in.
Get connected
Olio is a food sharing app that connects people in a local area to share and save food that would otherwise be thrown away. People snap any leftover food that needs to be used up and others can arrange a pick up.
Try Be connects cooks to people who want a home-cooked meal and allows people to bulk cook for others. It's perfect for when you're working late and don't want to panic-buy half a dozen ingredients you'll never eat or rely on a covered in plastic ready meal.
Too Good To Go is an app that connects restaurants who have meals that would otherwise be thrown away with hungry people, who can buy them for between £2 and £3.80. The service covers London, Manchester and North Yorkshire and as of November 2016 has saved over 10,000 meals from the bin. Meals are available to collect an hour before closing and come in a environmentally friendly sugarcane box.
The People's Fridge in Brixton is a free community space in Pop Brixton where people can leave edible food that's not needed for others to help themselves to.
Rethink what waste is
There are a number of artisan food producers that use food waste to create new yummy products.
Toast ale uses leftover bread in order to use less hops (read an interview with Toast here).
Rubies in the Rubble use rejected fruit and veg to make chutneys and ketchups and Spare Fruit make fruit crisps from produce that doesn't make the supermarket grade.
Oddbox is a fruit and vegetable box delivery scheme that takes veggies from farmers that fall below the cosmetic standard for supermarkets and sends wonky veg boxes to homes and offices.
For more features on food waste and those working to combat it, go to pebble magazine.