As the cost-of-living crisis persists and the impact of climate change causes havoc, UK retailer Sainsbury’s has announced the opening of ‘Sainsfreeze’, a walk-in freezer concept store.

The pop-up aims to show consumers how to freeze foods foods that one usually wouldn’t, saving surplus food going to waste and helping people to save money in this increasingly difficult period. This follows the brand’s recent move to omit ‘best-befores’ from 276 of its products.

With UK inflation continuing to rise, reaching a 40-year high in April 2022, according to the Office of National Statistics, and food costs increasing by nine percent between April 2021 and April 2022, Sainsfreeze comes at an opportune time.

The walk-in freezer will be opening in London’s Box Park in Shoreditch between 27-28 September. The familiarity of a regular Sainsbury’s store will be maintained from the outside, however, the inside will be equipped with frozen groceries that would usually be sold fresh.

Included in the frozen concept store will be products such as fruit and veg, dairy, meat, fish and baked goods. Everything will be given away free of charge to those who visit the store.

By repackaging regularly sold items, Sainsfreeze aims to cut down on freezer space, keep food fresh for longer, and teach consumers new ways to freeze food and reduce waste homes.

“When people think about climate change, food waste often gets overlooked. Around a third of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted and it contributes a whopping eight to 10 percent of greenhouse gas emissions globally each year,” said Ruth Cranston, Director of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability at Sainsbury’s.

“That is why we are launching Sainsfreeze, to help customers try and combat food waste and learn handy hints and top tips along the way. Innovative freezing not only allows us to save food we would otherwise have thrown away, but also to buy reduced food close to its use-by date, saving even more money on the weekly grocery bill.”

The items available have been seleced based on research that revealed the most commonly disposed products in British homes. These items include milk, eggs, bread and onions, as well as bananas and herbs.

“We need to look at our food storage and how we can ensure we waste as little as possible. Sainsfreeze will certainly help inform people about storing their food, and what unexpected items they’re able to freeze to guarantee less food is wasted,” added Catherine David, Director of Collaboration and Change at WRAP.

“With food waste costing the average household with children around £730 a year, and particularly in the current climate as we’re all looking for ways to save money wherver we can, this is really going to help our food last longer. It would be great to see more of these rolled out across the country and reach more people,” David continued.

Sainsbury’s has said that all surplus food from Sainsfreeze will donated to Sainsbury’s food distribution charity partner, FareShare, to ensure that no food goes to waste.