When we discard food, we are not only throwing away money but are also filling up landfills, squandering water and producing harmful methane gas.
It is estimated that households in the UK throw away 6.6 million tonnes of food per year, of which 4.5 million tonnes is edible!
Food waste is a bigger cause of climate change than plastics - Methane, released into the atmosphere from food decomposing in landfill, has over 21 times more warming power than CO2.
Almost two-thirds of Scottish food waste comes from households - Scottish households throw away 630,000 tonnes of food waste every year.
Food waste costs Scotland over £1 billion a year... - ...that's roughly £470 per household.
Sources: Scale of Scotland's food waste challenge, Zero Waste Scotland report. Wrap: The Food we waste in Scotland.
To help you make a difference to both the environment and your pocket here are some top tips:
Plate up for Glasgow was a hospitality-led pilot campaign during COP26 to highlight the issue of food waste and its impact on our environment and the local economy.
They collaborated with some of Glasgow's most loved venues, who all got involved by offering at least one low waste menu option during the campaign period. Each Plate up for Glasgow dish or drink was created specifically to send as little food waste to landfill as possible.
As a pilot initiative, and the first of its kind in Scotland, Plate up for Glasgow has been an incredibly insightful project, and the team look forward to sharing the successes and key learnings of the campaign in the near future.
Even though Plate up for Glasgow has officially come to an end, many of the participating venues are continuing to offer low waste dining options for the longer term. Why not show your continued support by booking up and dining out, safe in the knowledge that you'll not only be supporting one of your favourite local venues but also doing your bit in addressing climate change. Find out more details on venues here.
Plate Up for Glasgow - also offer top tips on how to be a food hero at home here.