News that a bin diver faces trial has not just thrust the spotlight on freeganism, but also the amount of food the mults chuck out, says James Halliwell


When Sacha Hall discovered her local Tesco throwing out food following a power cut, she quickly filled a few bags and headed for home and thought nothing more of it.

But later that day the police arrived and threatened to break down her front door. She was handcuffed and arrested. A search of her home uncovered some incriminating limp potato waffles and she was promptly arrested for “theft by finding”.

The Waffle One has now discovered that she faces trial by jury in July. But does bin diving, the practice whereby so-called freegans dig through the 360,000 tonnes of food UK grocers chuck out annually in search of a so called ‘golden-bag’, really merit prosecution?

Since the practice emerged in the UK in the late 90s, its popularity has grown massively. There are now several internet-based freegan communities that swap top tips and share adventures of rifling through food-filled bins in the dead of night, before disappearing with swag bags bursting with perfectly edible food.

A number of celebrity chefs have also got in on the act using the opportunity to decry the high levels of supermarket waste. The retailers, meanwhile, have largely turned a blind eye (presumably fearing public opprobrium) or quietly tried to deter the perpetrators.

“We keep all our food waste inside now before it is taken for recycling,” says an M&S store manager. “But we did have people trying to come and pinch stuff every day. Whenever anything was thrown away, people would come along and rake through the bin. We ignored it. We just thought they must be desperate.”

Whatever their motivation, as Hall has found, freegans may find it even harder to get a free lunch in the future. Tesco refuses to comment, but the decision by the police to prosecute suggests that the days bin divers can expect to get away with just a rap over the knuckles may be numbered.

Dr Sean Thomas, author of the 2010 paper ‘Do freegans commit theft?’, believes prosecution is a step too far. “With theft, the accused must be shown to be dishonest,” he argues. “The problem is distinguishing between honesty and disgust. People may be disgusted you are eating from a bin, but that is not dishonest. It shouldn’t be considered as theft.”

Not that this distinction is likely to prompt retailers to encourage the practice. They’d rather bin diving received no publicity at all, says Thomas. “If a freegan gets ill, the chances of a successful negligent claim would be very low, if not impossible,” he says. “But no supermarket wants the words “food poisoning” associated with it. And supermarkets do not want publicity drawn to the perfectly edible food that they discard.”

Especially when the levels are so high. According to Lindsay Boswell, MD of FareShare, supermarkets are working hard to minimise waste, but could be doing more. Just 3,000 of the 360,000 discarded tonnes goes to FareShare.

“We are working with the supermarkets to produce a solution. Sainsbury’s is a huge and active supporter of ours. But if we got just 1% of the food that was surplus, then that would be a quantum leap for us. We could go from seven million meals a year to 70 million.”

Initiatives such as the Courtauld Commitment are also having a positive impact, says Boswell. “It provides a great platform to talk to people. And food waste is going down. I genuinely believe people who work in the food industry do not like seeing waste. And if we can repeat the success on the packaging side with surplus food, that will make a massive difference.”


Current cases- A man attempting to steal used clothes from a donation bin became trapped inside for four hours last week. His accomplice who gave him a leg-up into the bin panicked when he heard security coming and fled. The man was arrested on suspicion of theft but escaped with a warning.

- Eight officers in a helicopter, two vans, two dog units and three patrol cars combined forces to arrest two recyclers for taking 47p of scrap from a tip in Gloucester last week. Owen Gray, 50, was fined £20. His accomplice, Angela Cubitt, was not charged.

- Thieves stole a hawk worth about £200 from a recycling centre in Shepperton this week. Police have asked to be contacted if anyone is offered a second-hand bird of prey.

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