In writing this I realised how all too easy it is to fall into the ‘trap’ of starting off on a negative, when actually all I wanted to do was highlight what a great idea it is to re-use old bread and use it as part of the beer making process! Any steps towards raising awareness and dealing with the excessive amounts of food waste is a good thing.

Re-using old bread in the beer making process is far from a new concept. However, what is really positive is that some major supermarkets are not only stocking the beer, they are getting actively involved in the concept – they’re bringing the idea in-part into their own business model and that can be significant for change.

Mainstream media highlights new brewing venture

The Guardian newspaper recently highlighted a partnership between the Hackney Brewery and the food waste charity Feedback (article links below). The brewery has created a beer made entirely from waste bread that can hold it’s own against other craft beers. This will hopefully make the idea popular enough to make a dent in the 24million slices of bread that currently end up in the bin. Even better is that the company has committed to further helping the charity by directing profits right back at Feedback so that the wider issue of food waste continues to be one that we are all aware of and can work towards reducing.

“All profits will go straight to Feedback. Stuart has just been named at the World Economic Forum in Davos as one of 30 leaders to inspire ambition and mobilise action to reduce food loss and waste globally.” (TheGuardian)

Food waste is significant

Bread is apparently the most wasted food item in the UK, so it makes up a large part of the estimated 15m tons of food waste that we produce per year. We can all aim to reduce our waste, and as a business we are always looking for and implementing ways that we can be more environmentally responsible. [Our vision]

Video links:

www.bbc.co.uk/uknews/turning-bread-into-beer-to-fight-food-waste
www.bbc.co.uk/uknews/whats-causing-britains-food-waste
Further reading and background information on food waste:

www.feedbackglobal.org
www.theguardian.com/uknews/raise-a-toast-and-tackle-food-waste
www.bbc.co.uk/uknews/turning-bread-into-beer
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