Iceland Foods and Olio celebrate 10 million meals rescued

Iceland Foods and Olio are celebrating a major milestone in their partnership, having redistributed more than 10 million meals’ worth of surplus food since launching their redistribution programme in 2022.

Throughout the partnership, surplus food from more than 1,000 Iceland and The Food Warehouse stores has reached over 165,000 households across the UK via Olio’s Food Waste Hero programme.

The achievement has been made possible by over 45,000 Olio volunteers, known as Food Waste Heroes, who collect surplus food from stores and redistribute it within their local communities.

The milestone comes as Iceland and Olio also celebrate one year of helping shoppers access discounted groceries through Iceland’s national reduced food initiative, launched in partnership with Gander.

Following successful trials in Bristol and London, Iceland’s yellow sticker reductions were made available to view through the Olio app, alerting its 5 million UK users to discounted groceries at their local store.

Since launch, more than 47 million Iceland reduced food listings have been added to the Olio app, with each listing receiving an average of 23 unique impressions. The initiative has helped shoppers stretch their grocery budgets while supporting efforts to reduce food waste.

Stuart Lendrum, Director of Product, Process and Sustainability at Iceland Foods, said: “Reaching 10 million meals redistributed with Olio is a fantastic milestone and demonstrates the impact that can be achieved when businesses and communities work together to make sure good food is eaten, not wasted.

We’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved through this partnership over the past four years, helping surplus food reach local households while supporting our commitment to doing the right thing for customers, communities and the planet.”

Saasha Celestial-One, COO and Co-founder of Olio, said: “It’s incredible to see that, through Iceland’s commitment to reducing food waste and the dedication of 45,000 Food Waste Heroes, we’ve been able to share 10 million meals with local households, instead of that food going to waste.

Retailers have a crucial role to play in building a more sustainable food system, and we’re proud to partner with organisations like Iceland that are leading the way. Together, we’ve shown how technology and community action can deliver real impact for people and the planet. Here’s to the next 10 million meals.”

Customers can download the Olio app to find free and discounted items at local Iceland stores and receive alerts about fresh reductions in their area.