Tesco to Turn Surplus Freshly-baked Bread into New Food Products

Supermarket chain Tesco will use its unsold bakery goods to create new products in an effort to reduce food waste from bread.

Tesco’s freshly-baked baguettes and batons were among the baked items left on shelves at the end of the day. The new range of olive crostini and bread pudding will be available in 24 stores next week, Guardian reports.

Tesco estimates the amount of unsold fresh bread could be halved if the new range was pushed to all of its stores.

The supermarket currently first reduces the price of leftover bread. The surplus is then sent to food distribution charities or offered to staff for free before being sent for use as animal feed.

From 2018-19, Tesco said it had donated 10,946 tones of surplus food from stores and distribution centers to 7,000 charities and community groups.

The 8,071 tones of food not taken by charities was offered and taken home by staff.

Tesco said it had reached 81% of its target of no food safe for human consumption going to waste.