The Full Freezer is Helping Tackle Food Waste

It can be time consuming to organise and cook healthy meals, but one woman is helping busy people reduce their food waste and cook from scratch more easily... by simply making better use of their home freezers. 

The Full Freezer was set up to reduce the stress around that daily question, ‘What’s for dinner tonight?’ and raise awareness about food waste. She aims to spread awareness of cooking on a budget for families struggling with food poverty – as well as educating people around freezing. 

"It is something that very much started in my own kitchen," Kate Hall, the founder, tells Smiley News. "I had batch cooked for years, but when my second child came along I found it hard to find the time or motivation. I kept buying fresh ingredients with good intentions, only for them to go off before I could use them. We were wasting so much money, and regularly relying on convenience meals. 

“Then I had a lightbulb moment; if I could freeze meals, surely I could freeze all of the ingredients that went into them? [Spoiler alert: You can!] I was very nervous about food safety, so I did some training to ensure I wasn't going to make my family sick, and then I was away!”

(Read more about how Oddbox has saved 150k tonnes of food waste)

Instead of binning items Kate knew she wasn't going to use, she would chop them up and then freeze them. Over time, she built up a stash of ingredients that meant she could easily cook whole meals with no waste, and without having to pop to the shops.

When the pandemic hit, she felt compelled to share more about the concept, knowing that it could be useful to other people. “When I learnt how bad food waste is for the environment, I knew it was something I had to do," she says.

Now she teaches a 6-week course - The Freezer Geek Academy - and runs ‘Lunch and Learn’ sessions for companies and their employees. She’s also collaborated with brands such as Love Food Hate Waste, to help raise awareness of the simple steps households can take to cut down on waste. 

There are a wealth of free online resources on Kate's website, too. 

“Home freezing can be a massive help when it comes to keeping food costs low," she adds. "Most people don't realise just how much food they can freeze, or how much they can fit into their freezers when they use the space strategically.

"The average UK family wastes around £730 every year throwing away food that they could have eaten, so there are definitely savings to be had for some people.”

(Read more about this countertop composter which tackles food waste)

The freezer can give back some control around what you eat and when; it can also make it possible to take advantage of more 'yellow-sticker' reduced items, particularly fresh produce. If you have more than you need of something, or manage to pick up a bargain, then the excess can often be frozen and used for another meal. 

Kate says the loveliest feedback has been from those who have used what they have learnt to get through difficult situations. 

For example, Ruth, who was in her Academy, said: "My husband was seriously ill and in hospital twice in the last two months. I was able to cook healthy meals for myself by cooking from my freezer and with very little effort at a time when cooking proper meals was the last thing I felt like doing.” 

Inspired to act?

EDUCATE: You can download a free guide called '10 Foods You Didn't Know You Could Freeze'.

GET INVOLVED: Join the Full Freeze Facebook Group, where people can ask questions about freezing and celebrate their wins. Or check out Kate’s ‘Can I Freeze It’ videos on her Instagram. 

DONATE AND VOLUNTEER: Support Love Food Hate Waste to help reduce food waste across the UK.