Lidl GB is rolling out its successful evening surplus food collection scheme to almost 200 stores, allowing shoppers to pick up free fresh food that would otherwise be thrown away. The initiative, run in partnership with the food-sharing app Olio, aims to redistribute 5,000 tonnes of surplus food annually once fully nationwide – the equivalent of nearly 11.9 million meals.
How the scheme works
Under the scheme, Lidl stores offer surplus fresh produce, chilled meat, fish, poultry and bakery items at the end of the day. When charities cannot collect these items before closing time, Olio's volunteer “Food Waste Heroes” step in, collecting the food and redistributing it to neighbours, families and community groups via the Olio app. Volunteers may keep up to 10% of the food for themselves, with the rest shared locally.
The expansion follows a successful trial at 20 stores, which has already prevented around 1,200kg of food waste every week. The first phase of the rollout is heavily concentrated in London and the South East, the Midlands, the North East, Yorkshire and Cumbria, with plans to extend nationwide by the end of 2026.
Community impact
Kelly Stallwood, Deputy manager at Buzzee Beez Pre-school Food Scheme in Harlow, Essex, which collects from the local Lidl, said: “These new evening collections of chilled and bakery items have been so beneficial to the families we support in the pre-school. 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.”
Georgina Hall, Director of Corporate Affairs at Lidl GB, added: “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. With our sights set on a nationwide rollout by the end of this year, this expanding partnership will soon empower communities to rescue up to nearly 12 million meals every single year. This collaboration will make a huge impact on the lives of the most vulnerable in our communities everywhere.”
Lidl's wider food waste efforts
Lidl says it has already donated 50 million meals through its Feed it Back partnership with Neighbourly since 2016. People wanting to receive free food under the new scheme must download the Olio app.
Full list of Lidl stores in the first phase
The first phase includes stores across the following areas: London (including Hayes, Greenford, Walthamstow, Harrow, Wood Green, Uxbridge, Acton, Hammersmith, Shepherd's Bush, and more), South East (Dunstable, Welwyn Garden City, Borehamwood, Maidenhead, Reading, Slough, Wokingham, Bicester, Bishops Stortford, Colchester, Harlow, and others), Midlands (Northampton, Coventry, Leicester, Rugby, Nuneaton, Tamworth, Leamington Spa, and more), North East (Newcastle, Sunderland, Durham, Gateshead, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, and others), Yorkshire (Leeds, York, Bradford, Harrogate, Scarborough, and more), and Cumbria (Carlisle, Kendal, Cockermouth, Maryport, and others).
