‘Yellow sticker’ discounts are typically applied to food that is about to go out of date – but as part of a new trial, shoppers will be able to pick them up for free
Tesco is to give away food for free as part of a major shake-up of its “yellow sticker” discounts.
“Yellow sticker” discounts are typically applied to food that is about to go out of date, with Tesco slashing costs by up to 90% off the original price. But as part of a new trial at a small number of Tesco Express stores, the supermarket will cut “yellow sticker” prices to £0 for products that haven’t been sold after 9.30pm.
Some food will continue to be donated to charities, while staff will also get priority for “yellow sticker” items – but any other reduced food that is still in stores ahead of closing time will then become available for shoppers to take for free. As well as reducing food waste, the trial will help Tesco meet its zero targets.
A spokesman for the supermarket said: “We are constantly looking for innovative new ways to reduce food waste. This trial, in a small number of our Express stores, will allow customers to take any remaining yellow stickered items for free at the end of the day, after they have first been offered to charities and colleagues.”
Tesco aims to cut its food waste by 50% by 2025, and has a target of becoming “carbon neutral” by 2035 and net zero by 2050. Ken Murphy, the CEO of Tesco, has his share bonus package partially linked to the company’s food waste reduction targets. It comes after Tesco cut ties with a food waste processor last year, after it was discovered that food it thought was going to feed animals was used to generate energy.
This meant Tesco was forced to revise its food waste figure from 45% between the 2016 and 2023, to just 18%. Meanwhile, Tesco last week issued an apology to customers after it confirmed bottles of six pints of milk had been discontinued across all of its UK supermarket stores.
One user of X/Twitter said: “Can I ask @Tesco why you don’t sell the six pints of milk anymore? Certainly not home delivery.” The supermarket chain responded to confirm the product had been axed and apologised for not being able to share better news. The Tesco spokesperson said: “Good afternoon, thanks for getting in touch. Tesco British Whole Milk 3.408L, 6 Pints has been discontinued. I’m sorry for any disappointment.”
Tesco discontinued the product from its stores several years ago, in 2023. A spokesperson said the move was to help reduce store wastage. They said: “We phased out six-pint bottles of milk back in 2023 to reduce wastage, as there were higher levels of waste on that product size.”
