Lincolnshire Co-op has prevented 1.8 million meals from going to waste over the past year thanks to its partnership with markdown technology provider Retail Insight.
The society, which owns 95 food stores, uses Retail Insight’s Waste Trim software, which analyses historical data, sales patterns and expiration dates to highlight and identify products or ranges that are regularly wasted.
These insights enable Lincolnshire Co-op to optimise stock assortment and minimise overstocking on frequently wasted items, meaning less produce is entering the reduced-to-clear process.
Thanks to the technology, Lincolnshire Co-op avoided nearly 1.8 million meals of food waste last year, a rise of 6.5% compared to 2023. This saved 4,818 tonnes of CO2 from being emitted, which equates to enough energy to power 5,726 UK homes for a year.
“It’s been great to work alongside Retail Insight to further reduce food waste, and we’re already seeing a remarkable impact,” said Lincolnshire Co-op head of food operations Craig Adamson.
“We’re committed to looking after our local environment and this applies to everything we do, from the way our outlets are designed to how we source electricity. All of this, combined with our efforts to reduce waste, helps us to work towards our sustainability goals.”
Retail Insight VP for customer success EMEA Kieran O’Brien added: “Lincolnshire Co-op is coming at its food waste reduction efforts from all angles – as well as preventing RTC items from entering landfill with dynamic markdowns, it’s using data and insights to optimise stock, cutting the volumes of produce even entering its RTC process with the Waste Trim feature.
“This holistic approach to food waste management is evidenced in the significant progress it has made in food waste reduction over the last year.”
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