We are excited for the second launch of The Rescue Range, with two new flavours! Introducing Pea & Honey Roast Ham soup and Mac & Cheese soup, alongside our original Broccoli & Stilton soup.
At Curd & Cure, we have developed two new recipes to rescue and upcycle surplus ingredients that arise directly from within the business.
‘Wasting food feeds climate change’. Reducing food waste has been identified as the most effective solution to preventing global warming. We launched our first flavour at the beginning of Food Waste Action Week, the UK’s first ever week to raise awareness of the environmental consequences of wasting food. Now we launch our next two flavours on International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste. With the same aim to change the way people think about waste and to challenge other businesses towards being more innovative with reducing food waste.
Too Good To Waste
Our team cuts down meats and cheeses into pre-packs in our in-house production department. During this process, offcuts of these products arise. We have rescued the offcuts of honey roast ham for the rich Pea & Honey Roast Ham soup and every last scrap is used to create a rich stock so that we get all the flavour.
Mature Cheddar is always a firm favourite and perfect for a creamy Mac & Cheese soup! Surplus arose due to an overstock of product after a customer cancelled their order. The tricky part of being a wholesaler is the balance between having enough stock to ensure we can fulfil customer orders, while not overstocking which brings the risk of surplus.
Our original Broccoli & Stilton soup utilises Long Clawson Stilton which was destined to go to waste due to a product over stock. This recipe is made from 38% upcycled ingredients including the cheese and potatoes.
Upcycled foods are defined as ingredients that otherwise would not have gone to human consumption but have been redirected and used to have a positive impact on the environment. We have calculated the percentage of upcycled ingredients within each recipe and have added this as an exciting new update to the label for the new flavours!
We have continued our collaboration with The Speedy Kitchen who share our values and have worked hard to eliminate waste from the recipes, such as using the entire broccoli including the leaves and stalk. We rescue wonky potatoes from Provenance Potatoes which are usually sent for animal feed, this not only reduces their carbon footprint but also increases access to healthy food.
Why rescue surplus?
We launched the Rescue Range at the beginning of 2021 after having witnessed, first-hand the impact of the pandemic on the food industry. As a supplier to the foodservice, hospitality and retail industries who were experiencing ever-changing circumstances, we saw the extent to the food waste that was occurring within the industry. This included the waste of thousands of Christmas puddings bought before the closure of pubs over the Christmas period. Now, in the latter half of 2021, the industry is seeing food waste occur again on unprecedented levels due to the continued uncertainty brought on by the shortage of HGV drivers. This is causing slower supply chains and consequently a reduction in freshness of products.
At Curd & Cure we redistribute as much surplus food as possible through different avenues to reach different consumers. Reintroducing food back into the human food chain and upcycling the ingredients food not only captures the value of the food which would otherwise be wasted, it also ensures the resources that went into the production of the ingredients were also not wasted.
Our soup is also in support of the Sustainable Development Goal 12.3: Inspiring ambition and mobilising action to reduce food loss and waste globally.
