BIG INTERVIEW
With pressure on manufacturers to reduce food waste and improve the sustainability of their operations, where do you see redistribution sitting within the wider hierarchy of surplus management? Is the industry becoming better at preventing surplus in the first place, or are there still significant opportunities further down the chain? The food waste hierarchy provides a clear framework for how ‘waste’ should be managed. Prevention is key and we are seeing lots of innovation across the industry to stop surplus in the first place. However, it is inevitable that some will still exist and redistribution is vital to keep the surplus in the human food chain, where it was intended. That is why we are continually investing
in systems and processes to support our partners who can be confident that wherever surplus happens in their production and supply chains, we can help them capture it and stop it becoming waste.
Your work also connects commercial surplus with the social purpose of Community Shop. What can the redistribution
of confectionery and
other surplus products tell us about the relationship between food waste, affordability and access to food in the UK?
IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS WE HAVE STOPPED MORE THAN 4.6 MILLION SURPLUS CONFECTIONERY PRODUCTS FROM GOING TO WASTE
learn new skills, meet new people and ultimately be empowered to develop their own capabilities and deliver a positive future. These shops show how surplus doesn’t just provide affordable food but also provide opportunities and connections to give people support to manage for the long-term.
Reducing food waste and helping people experiencing food insecurity are two distinct issues, however, Company Shop Group is in a unique position to help tackle both of these challenges. Our partners can choose to sell their surplus stock to us or donate it to our social enterprise, Community Shop, or do both. Many partners opt for donation as
they want to unlock the value from their surplus to deliver social impact. The donated stock is sold in Community Shop at deeply discounted prices, with the profits reinvested into its Community Hub and Kitchen, where people can
Looking ahead, what do you think will fundamentally change the way the confectionery industry deals with surplus over the next five years – and what should manufacturers, retailers and brands be doing now to prepare for that change? More and more technology and AI systems are being employed throughout the food production and manufacturing process, helping to identify ways to reduce surplus. But this isn’t a silver bullet; it will not remove surplus altogether. There will always be an unforeseen situation that has created surplus. A delivery that didn’t arrive on time, an ingredient that was missed, packaging that was incorrect. The key is having a fully rounded system in place so that when these things do happen there is a flexible, scalable and trusted redistribution partner in place who can intervene and stop this becoming waste.
OCTOBER 2026 • KENNEDY’S CONFECTION • 25
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