By Linette Israelsson, Published on Sept 28, 2023, at 22:07
From 3,000 to 6,000 kronor. That's the cost of food waste for an average family in Sweden. Now, two authorities are launching the site svinnrik.se, which aims to help consumers save money while contributing to the climate.
An average Swede is estimated to throw away or flush down 35 kilos of food each year. That equates to over 350 cluster tomatoes, around 700 small eggs, about 100 liters of oatmeal, or just over 230 slices of entrecote. For a family of four, this amounts to between 3,000 and 6,000 kronor per year, according to the Financial Supervisory Authority (FI) - which now, in collaboration with the Food Administration, is launching the site svinnrik.se. The purpose is to highlight how food waste, personal finances, and climate are interconnected. Globally, food waste is estimated to account for eight to ten percent of the total emissions of greenhouse gases.
Money "straight into the trash can"
Niklas Uppenberg, project leader at FI, says that svinnrik started as a campaign aimed at middle school teachers teaching youngsters about food and personal finance. "But the new website is directed straight at youngsters, parents, and consumers generally interested in the subject. If we can teach personal finance by getting more people to reduce their food waste, positive effects arise for the climate and people's wallets," he writes in an email to Expressen.
Niklas Uppenberg describes it as families in Sweden throwing several hundred kronor "straight into the trash can" every month.
"For many households, food is one of the largest expenses, and in times when everything is getting more expensive, reducing food waste is one of the easiest ways to save money," he writes and adds that if this money were instead invested, a few hundred kronor a month could grow into substantial amounts.
Much food waste from households
Who holds the responsibility to reduce food waste?
"We all can make an effort to reduce food waste. Contrary to what many might believe, most of the food waste in Sweden occurs in households, and we, therefore, hope to motivate more people to throw away less by highlighting both the environmental and personal financial costs," writes Niklas Uppenberg. The site svinnrik.se was launched on Friday, September 29, the UN's International Food Waste Day.