OurCoop has revealed it has saved 5.4 million grocery items from going to waste over the past two years through its partnership with Olio.

The initiative, which has been in place since 2024 and now spans 400 OurCoop Food stores, enables store colleagues to alert local volunteers when surplus food is available at the end of the day.

These volunteers, also known by the group as “Food Waste Heroes”, collect the items and list them on the Olio app for free collection by nearby households.

The scheme is designed to address both food waste and food insecurity, with many users relying on the app to supplement household groceries during a period of continued cost-of-living pressure.

Since the partnership began, more than 1,600 tonnes of food has been redistributed.

OurCoop said this achievement has delivered significant environmental benefits, including saving 1.2bn litres of water and preventing 7.1m kg of CO₂ emissions, equivalent to removing more than 26m car miles from the road.

OurCoop social change manager Hannah Gallimore said the partnership reflects the Society’s focus on community and sustainability. “By working together, not only are we limiting food waste wherever we can, but we’re also helping households that need it most by putting meals on the table.

“Together with Olio, we’ve saved an impressive four million meals and shared them in our local communities,” she said.

Olio co founder and COO Saasha Celestial-One added: “The combined effort of our dedicated Food Waste Heroes and OurCoop’s store teams allows us to stop food from going to waste unnecessarily and redirect it to households in need,” she said.

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