Reykjavík Shop Gives Away Food To Stop Waste

Small supermarket, Kjöt and Fiskur, on Bergstaðastræti in central Reykjavík, has taken to giving away food products for free on their sell-by-date, reports RÚV.

The reason? Owner, Pavel Ermolinski, said that it made his soul feel better, knowing he wasn’t throwing away food – that was still edible – just because it had reached its sell-by-date.

“In the beginning we were throwing a lot of food away,” said Pavel. “Then one day I just thought to myself, this doesn’t make any sense, I felt really bad about throwing all of this out. So we put it in a basket [by the check out] and it’s been a real hit. We’ve gotten a lot of praise. Some people are hesitant, of course they’ve never seen it anywhere else, and are nervous to ask if they are allowed to take some of the food, and whether they have to pay anything for it.”

Pavel argues that there needs to be greater awareness of food waste, “even in a small store like this [a lot was being binned], I can’t even imagine what bigger supermarkets are throwing in the dumpster.”