UKTV allocates £1 million of airtime to Everyday Sustainability campaign

UKTV announces the launch of a new Everyday Sustainability campaign, dedicating £1 million worth of its own airtime across the network’s seven linear channels and streaming service, UKTV Play, to encourage viewers to make more sustainable lifestyle choices.

To launch the first year of the initiative, UKTV is tackling food waste and working with international climate action NGO WRAP and their campaign brand Love Food Hate Waste.

Sarah Goldman, Director of Advertising, UKTV:

“Sustainability is one of the core pillars of UKTV’s strategy, and the Everyday Sustainability campaign has been designed to harness the power of our network to inform and inspire viewers. The statistics about food waste are alarming, so I am delighted that we are working with the experts at Love Food Hate Waste to nudge people into more sustainable behaviours.”

The British public throws away 6.6 million tonnes of household food waste a year, which accounts for 70% of the UK’s total food waste annually. Shockingly, 4.5 million tonnes of this household food waste could have been eaten. Not only does this have an environmental impact due to the greenhouse gases created from the production of the food and the resources used to grow this food, it also has a massive financial impact, which is all the more important during the current cost of living crisis. The average UK family of four wastes about £730 worth of food a year, or approximately £60 a month.

To address this issue, UKTV consulted WRAP, a climate action NGO established in the UK in 2000, and now working in 40+ countries around the globe to tackle the causes of the climate crisis and give the planet a sustainable future. WRAP runs the Love Food Hate Waste national brand which delivers campaigns aimed at radically reducing the amount of food which is wasted in UK homes.

Catherine David, Director, Behaviour Change & Business Programmes at WRAP:

“It is a pleasure to be working with UKTV to highlight the huge issue of household food waste, and what we can all do to make more sustainable choices in our everyday lives. We are delighted that Love Food Hate Waste tips will reach UKTV’s huge audience.”

The campaign will launch on October 14th with an average of 100 spots per week across UKTV’s network for a twelve-month period. The campaign creative consists of a 40-second promo spot, and a 20 second cut-down version, and is being produced in-house by UKTV Creative in collaboration with the Love Food Hate Waste team.

The campaign spot asks viewers to think twice about their food waste habits in a comedic and engaging way, with anthropomorphised food items watching one of their “wasted” friends get into embarrassing scrapes, reminding viewers that no food should get wasted.

UKTV’s sustainability strategy is split into three areas; Our Viewers, Our Partners and Ourselves. As part of the Viewers strand, the Everyday Sustainability campaign complements the wide array of sustainability initiatives that UKTV runs on and off screen, including its work with planet placement. UKTV is aligned with the BBC and BBC Studios on committing to reach the BBC Group Net Zero strategy based on science.

Scott Russell, Creative Director, UKTV:

“Our viewers know there’s climate emergency but don’t have clear direction on what they can do to help. This quirky campaign brings food waste to the fore in a memorable and playful way and asks viewers to only buy what they need.”