Mandate Food Retailers to Prevent Food and Drink Waste
The Issue
Stop Food Waste — Feed People Instead
During my first year at university, I faced a harsh reality: because I didn’t qualify for a student loan under the English system, and my parents were already struggling financially, I couldn’t afford food. To survive, I often starved myself. When I could scrape a little money together, my meals were reduced to pasta with butter — or, on better days, tuna mixed in. At my lowest, I even resorted to eating scraps left behind by housemates, just so I had something in my stomach.
The hunger quickly became a toxic cycle. Starvation almost felt addictive; I’d push myself to see how long I could go without eating, until one day I nearly fainted after a lecture. That was my wake-up call. But until I found work, even taking part in psychology experiments for £5 or £20 was the difference between eating or not. That period left me with lasting scars and a deep understanding of how devastating food insecurity can be.
Now, years later, I work in retail — and I see the other side of the same crisis. Perfectly good food gets wasted every single day. Despite best efforts with stock control and discounts, far too much edible food still ends up in the bin. And every time I see it, I think back to the times I was hungry, and how life-changing that food could have been for me — and could be today for countless others.
Food waste isn’t just poor planning; it’s a systemic failure. Legal worries and “operational challenges” are often used as excuses, but they shouldn’t be. Other countries have proven there’s a better way. In France, supermarkets are legally required to donate surplus food to charities, and it works — donations have increased, waste has dropped, and fewer people go hungry.
We can do the same here. I’m calling on policymakers to introduce legislation that requires food retailers to:
Offer surplus edible food to staff.
Donate remaining food to charities, shelters, and food banks.
Ensure disposal is the very last resort.
No one should have to starve while edible food goes to waste. Please sign and share this petition to demand change. Together, we can turn waste into hope.
3
The Issue
Stop Food Waste — Feed People Instead
During my first year at university, I faced a harsh reality: because I didn’t qualify for a student loan under the English system, and my parents were already struggling financially, I couldn’t afford food. To survive, I often starved myself. When I could scrape a little money together, my meals were reduced to pasta with butter — or, on better days, tuna mixed in. At my lowest, I even resorted to eating scraps left behind by housemates, just so I had something in my stomach.
The hunger quickly became a toxic cycle. Starvation almost felt addictive; I’d push myself to see how long I could go without eating, until one day I nearly fainted after a lecture. That was my wake-up call. But until I found work, even taking part in psychology experiments for £5 or £20 was the difference between eating or not. That period left me with lasting scars and a deep understanding of how devastating food insecurity can be.
Now, years later, I work in retail — and I see the other side of the same crisis. Perfectly good food gets wasted every single day. Despite best efforts with stock control and discounts, far too much edible food still ends up in the bin. And every time I see it, I think back to the times I was hungry, and how life-changing that food could have been for me — and could be today for countless others.
Food waste isn’t just poor planning; it’s a systemic failure. Legal worries and “operational challenges” are often used as excuses, but they shouldn’t be. Other countries have proven there’s a better way. In France, supermarkets are legally required to donate surplus food to charities, and it works — donations have increased, waste has dropped, and fewer people go hungry.
We can do the same here. I’m calling on policymakers to introduce legislation that requires food retailers to:
Offer surplus edible food to staff.
Donate remaining food to charities, shelters, and food banks.
Ensure disposal is the very last resort.
No one should have to starve while edible food goes to waste. Please sign and share this petition to demand change. Together, we can turn waste into hope.
The Decision Makers
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Petition created on 30 August 2025