Fight waste and boost sales with these nutritious tips for food retailers 

Retailers seen to be doing their bit to reduce food waste by offering a local, personal, environmentally responsible service, are becoming the go-to for European shoppers. Better still, change doesn’t have to be sweeping. Sometimes just one or two smart ideas could see stock selling out and food waste slashed.

To help food retailers in the Nordic countries, Brother is sharing some tips that could help you keep both your produce and your profits, fresh.

Wholesome initiatives for your customers and the planet

• Buy locally so your customers can too – eco-conscious European consumers are increasingly keen to buy produce with minimal food mileage. For retailers this is great news because local produce sells quickly and thereby cuts store waste. Creating easily edited templates is a great way to proudly make customers aware that they’re buying local. Signage you can quickly print off detailing the locality, heritage and quality of produce, could see stock selling even quicker.
  
     
• Stock imperfect fruit and vegetables – more than a third of all fruit and vegetables grown in Europe is thrown away before it enters the food chain because it is deemed too ‘wonky’¹. Stocking produce that is strangely shaped or slightly blemished, immediately reduces waste. Better still, it’s a fantastic seller. That said, some customers may have reservations. Inspire them with ways to use imperfect produce, for example, with recipes for smoothies or stews.
  
     
  
• Share waste-reducing hacks with your customers – clever tips such as freezing herbs in olive oil in ice trays, or multi-purposing ingredients to double up meals, could help customers slash their household food waste. Again, you can do this by printing template signage.
  
     
• Offer try-before-you-buy on local products – customers are more likely to buy a product they know they like. And by the same token they’re less likely to waste it. So why not offer free samples of locally made artisan products such as sauces and preserves?

Some strategic food for thought

• Combat choice overload – being a customer isn’t always easy. Imagine how long it could take to decide between upwards of 20 different types of butter… Reducing the amount of choices customers have to make in your store will improve their shopping experience, and it could also help you reduce the quantity of stock nearing expiry. Having a more select range also demonstrates greater confidence in your products.
  
     
• Compostable shopping bags – polymer bags that can be used to compost food are an excellent way of ensuring edible waste doesn’t end up in landfill. If your local recycling structures don’t support compost – why not demonstrate your green intentions by setting up a community composting initiative with your customers?
  
     
• Reduce waste with the latest labelling solutions – repricing stock quickly, simply and intuitively is an essential way of reducing in-store waste. The latest wireless labelling solutions from Brother enable immediate item and shelf-edge repricing.
  
  

Mould-breaking ideas for a waste free future

• Reduce plastic packaging – responsible consumerism is on the rise and plastic is target number one. For retailers, there’s another great reason to ditch plastic – increased sales. A group of supermarkets in New Zealand recently abandoned plastic wrapping for virtually all of its fruit and vegetables. Sales of some items rose by up to 300%².
  
  
• Pioneer a switch to innovative packaging – pointing to the future, innovative bio-based, bio-degradable and natural nanomaterial packaging can extend shelf life and improve recyclability. Leading the switch with stock selection could see your store play a role in reducing the staggering 1.3 billion tonnes of annual global food waste³.