Lidl is giving away free food at nearly 200 stores across the UK through an expanded partnership with the food-sharing app Olio. The scheme, which follows a successful trial at 20 stores, allows shoppers to collect surplus food that would otherwise go to waste.
How the scheme works
The initiative recruits volunteers, known as Food Waste Heroes, who step in when charities cannot make evening collections. Shoppers can sign up via the Olio app. Volunteers may keep up to 10% of rescued items for their own households and distribute the rest to local families, shelters, and community groups.
Items available include fresh produce, chilled meat, fish, poultry, and bakery treats that cannot be held overnight. At the trial stores, the scheme is already preventing around 1,200kg of food waste every week.
Nationwide rollout and impact
Once live nationally, Lidl expects the initiative to redistribute 5,000 tonnes of surplus food each year, equivalent to nearly 11.9 million meals. The expanded rollout includes stores from Newcastle to Shepherd's Bush in London, with plans to go nationwide by the end of the year.
Kelly Stallwood, deputy manager at Buzzee Beez Pre-school in Harlow, Essex, which collects from a local Lidl, said the evening collections have been "so beneficial to the families we support in the pre-school." She added: "Whether they have new babies arriving, are struggling with the rising cost of living, or simply want to support reducing food waste, the reaction has been fantastic. In the pre-school we support over 50 families…so this surplus food really helps make a difference."
Community effort and existing efforts
Georgina Hall, Director of Corporate Affairs at Lidl GB, said: "Real change requires a community effort, and we are incredibly grateful to our store teams, charity partners and the dedicated Food Waste Heroes who are rescuing good quality food for those who need it most." She added that the expanding partnership will "soon empower communities to rescue up to nearly 12 million meals every single year."
The new initiative builds on Lidl's existing work with social impact platform Neighbourly. Since 2016, Lidl GB has donated 50 million meals through its Feed it Back scheme with the platform.
