CFA is supporting WRAP’s Chill the Fridge Out campaign (16 October – 4 November) which aims to reduce food waste by raising consumer awareness of correct fridge temperatures. WRAP reports that £15 billion worth of edible food is binned by UK households every year, with incorrect storage being cited as a major cause of its waste.
Fridges need to be kept at 5°C max. Temperatures above this mean that food spoils quicker and gets thrown away earlier.
But WRAP’s research has revealed that half the population doesn’t know what temperature their fridge should be. Additionally, they found that the average domestic fridge is set to 7°C.
The campaign includes an online tool that demonstrates how to achieve the optimum chill temperature in 24 of the most popular fridge brands.
Kaarin Goodburn, CFA Director, explains the relevance: “Food waste is a major contributor to climate change. The UK’s chilled food sector has a long-standing commitment to reducing food waste. We are an early-adopter signatory to the UK Food Waste Reduction Roadmap aiming to halve UK food waste by 2030.
We’ve also engaged with Government, WRAP and fridge manufacturers over many years regarding the imperative that appliances run at the correct temperature, so we’re delighted to support WRAP’s campaign “
