Prevention tips and resources for grocery and retail stores
Supermarkets and grocery stores throw away 10% of all wasted food in the United States every year, due to reasons ranging from overstocked product displays, cosmetic expectations, sell-by dates, damaged goods, outdated promotional items, and the offering of fresh, ready food until closing time. The food retail industry spends billions of dollars in food waste costs; the USDA estimates that supermarkets lose $15 billion a year in unsold fruits and vegetables alone.
These helpful resources below can reduce the amount of food wasted at your location
Analyze your food waste
Businesses often do not realize how much food goes to waste. Keeping records of how much surplus edible food you produce will help you see opportunities to reduce food waste and cut costs. Tracking wasted food is always the first step and can be as simple as tracking waste for one day, a week, or a month. You can begin a food waste assessment using the U.S.EPA’s tools.
Purchasing
Increase communication with suppliers around food waste (Suggestions from the Safe Surplus Toolkit)
Take an accurate inventory and base orders on what you currently have
You can use just-in-time purchasing software to reduce unnecessary purchasing
Buy surplus or odd-shaped produce from farms or wholesalers where they would otherwise be wasted and sell them at a discount
Send order estimates more frequently to suppliers to better align production planning with order timings
Start or increase regular communication with suppliers
Revise your supply contracts to require that suppliers have a food waste reduction or food donation program
Change contracts to include methods to prevent food loss (e.g., use innovative packaging such as vacuum-sealed meat)
Make food waste reduction a key performance indicator in operations, supply chain, and employee performance
Packaging
Packaging improvements can reduce waste by delaying spoilage, keeping food quantities at the right size, and communicating information about food to consumers. See ways packaging can ensure complete consumption on ReFED’s Package Design page.
Clarify date labelling
To reduce customer confusion, work with your supply chain to clearly label or define the difference between safety-based and quality-based date labels. New date labels may allow more foods to safely stay on your shelves for longer periods of time.
See best standardizing label practices with ReFED’s helpful date labeling resource
Preparation and storage for the deli and bakery
(Suggestions from the Safe Surplus Toolkit)
Use leftovers from the day before
Steak can be used for beef stew the next day
Train staff on knife skills to make more efficient knife cuts to prevent waste
Use as much of the food as possible
Cook up carrot greens and don’t peel cucumbers or potatoes
Reconstitute stalky vegetables that have wilted by immersing them in warm water (100 ̊F) for 15 minutes
Marinate meats to extend their shelf life for a few more days
Refresh staff on storage techniques for different foods (e.g., don’t store tomatoes and lettuce in the same container or near each other)
Use see-through storage containers to easily see what is available and fresh
Cook, freeze, juice, or otherwise process foods that are approaching the end of their peak freshness to prolong their useful life
Set up and display
Piling produce high can end in damage and higher labor costs. Reducing stock levels will keep produce fresh for longer. Instead of using a pile of produce, have a support system that makes it look like a pile to keep produce fresher
Create a discount shelf area for ripe, nearly expired, discontinued, or slightly damaged food
Allow prepared foods to run out near store closing. Track these items and only make as much as you can sell