Asda has collaborated with digital experts Whywaste on a new plan it hopes will substantially reduce food waste in stores.
The company’s digital date-checking technology allows staff to identify products close to their expiry date, so they can be marked down more efficiently before reaching their expiry date.
Staff will no longer even need to look at all the products. Instead, they receive information about which products are about to expire via an app.
Asda said it hoped this would mean far fewer products were overlooked and ended up going to waste.
The supermarket has set a goal of reducing food waste by at least 50% by 2030 as part of the Courtauld Commitment.
The collaboration started with a pilot in one store in early 2020, but Asda said it now hoped to complete the rollout in all stores by the end of the year.
‘’To reach our waste targets we are constantly looking for technologies and tools to help,” said Asda waste process manager Andrew Hudson.
“By partnering with Whywaste we can help eliminate unnecessary food waste from our shelves by identifying products nearing the end of their lifespan easier and encouraging customers to purchase them by reducing their price and increasing their visibility.
“We have had great feedback from our stores and we are excited by the positive impact this new technology will have.”
Whywaste co-founder and CTO Martin Grådal added: “The UK is world-leading when it comes to tackling food waste. Whywaste are extra proud to announce our collaboration with Asda, a chain in the forefront of this important work.
“For the past two years we’ve had the privilege of working closely together with Asda’s waste and supply chain management, with the ambition of implementing our solution across all superstores and supermarkets. Our joint journey of eliminating food waste has just begun.”
