Part of a Climate Innovation Network series profiling the firms making real climate progress.

Up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions annually are generated from food waste. While global consumption, shipping and food preparation all contribute, retail and supermarket activities have a significant role to play in helping to eliminate waste and reduce emissions. To gain a snapshot of how this might be achieved, we’ve profiled a firm that has invoked sustainable and circular principles to make progress against its climate goals.

Who:
Aldi, the UK’s fourth largest supermarket, which has a global footprint.

What particular challenges do they face?
Ensuring that supply levels of all products are sufficiently and constantly met by consumer demand to alleviate wasted produce, which affects both profitability and environmental performance. Alongside this, Aldi also faces the challenge of managing redistribution channels to redirect surplus stock.

What did they do?
Reduced food waste as a percentage of total food sales by 57% from a 2017 baseline.

How did they do it?
Three pillars stand out:

• Rolling out eco-concept store that incorporates energy saving measures, solar panels and refill fixtures for incentivizing reuse and waste reduction.
• Partnering with surplus food platform Too Good To Go to save product from waste.
• Donating 40 million meals via its charity partner Neighbourly since 2019.
  
  

Where you can find out more:
To read more about how Aldi achieved an almost 60% reduction in its food waste, read the supermarket chain’s press release here.