- After a successful trial in 122 stores, Lidl is rolling out the Too Good To Waste boxes to stores all stores across Great Britain, including those in Manchester
- The boxes contain 5kg of fruit and veg for just £1.50
- Differing from wonky veg, they are filled with fruit and veg from stores, which has become slightly damaged, discoloured or deteriorated, but is still perfectly good to eat
- The initiative, which is an industry first, is designed to reduce fruit and veg waste in stores, and has already eliminated 250 tonnes of food waste
The boxes, priced at just £1.50 for approximately 5kg, contain fruit and vegetables from the store shelves, which have become slightly damaged, discoloured or deteriorated, but are still perfectly food to eat.
They are put together daily by the discounter’s dedicated in-store Freshness Specialists, and are available to customers from opening until midday, at which point, any leftover boxes are given to local good cause through Lidl’s surplus food redistribution programme, Feed it Back.
Different from ‘Wonky Veg’ boxes, sold by other supermarkets, the initiative is designed to reduce fruit and veg waste in store. Instead of pricing down produce that is considered ‘wonky’, Lidl works closely with its suppliers to ensure a degree of flexibility with specifications at different times of the year, to include items within its standard product lines.
Christian Härtnagel, CEO Lidl GB, said: “The positive feedback that we have received off the back of our trial has been incredible; from our colleagues who are showing so much passion for them, to our customers who were getting in touch from the get go asking where they could get one. We’re therefore really excited to be rolling the boxes out to all of our stores nationwide, and we’re really pleased to see that it’s also starting to be adopted by other supermarkets.
“The really brilliant thing about this initiative is that, not only is it helping to tackle the highly important challenge of food waste, it’s also helping our customers make even more savings. Additionally, it’s a great example of how we, as discounter, can utilise our lean and efficient business model to fulfil our mission to make good, healthy food more affordable and accessible, whilst acting sustainably.”
