CFA members redistribute millions of surplus food items, including chilled ready meals, sandwiches, desserts, pies and soups. Since CFA began to collect data in 2017 to the end of 2025 more than 85m (85,473,630) meals (measured in 450g units) have been redistributed by Members.
In 2025 alone, food equivalent to nearly 20 million meals went to those in need through partners including Company Shop and Felix (formerly FareShare and The Felix Project).
Dr Rachel Hackett, CFA’s Sustainability Consultant, commented “It is great to see CFA members’ commitment to redistribution of surplus food. Opportunities for redistribution occur when products are good and safe to eat but cannot go on sale at their intended destination. There are many reasons why this might happen, for example, the product appearance may not meet expectations. As an industry,
we recognise that discarding food when it could be safely consumed is a waste; not just of the materials used to make the products, but the water and energy that went into them too. This is why our Members work with food redistribution partners across the UK and over 85 million meals have reached those in need since 2017.”
CFA has been working on sustainability for more than 20 years and continues to contribute to best practices. CFA supports WRAP’s UK Food and Drink Pact, including the Food Waste Reduction roadmap. Its members maintain zero waste to landfill status and continue to redistribute surplus food.