There’s a tendency to talk about food waste and the cost of living as two separate pressures shaping consumer behaviour. One is framed as moral, the other financial. But the reality, as our latest data shows, is far simpler and more powerful than that. For most UK households, these pressures have fused into one. 

Today, 96% of consumers have adopted at least one cost or waste cutting behaviour, and 82% say they are consciously trying to reduce food waste. Crucially, this is translating into action, with 63% saying they throw away less food than two years ago. This is starting to look less like a temporary response and more like the new normal.