Donating Unsold Supermarket Food

The question

How to approach this opinion essay question

An opinion (agree or disagree) essay needs a clear position from the introduction to the conclusion.

1. Paraphrase the statement and state your opinion in the introduction.
2. Give two main reasons, one per body paragraph, each with an example.
3. Consider the opposite view briefly, then explain why you still hold yours.
4. Conclude by restating your position in different words.

How to plan this answer

Structure

1. Introduction: paraphrase the waste of edible food by supermarkets and state that you agree a legal duty is justified.
2. Body 1: surplus food is wasted while many people struggle to afford enough to eat, so redirecting it meets a clear need.
3. Body 2: voluntary schemes are patchy, and a legal duty creates a consistent supply that charities can plan around.
4. Body 3: acknowledge the counter-arguments of cost, storage and safety liability, then explain why they can be managed.
5. Conclusion: restate your agreement and say the law should be designed to be practical for smaller shops.

Idea bank

• Food banks that receive large but unpredictable donations, so a legal duty would give them regular deliveries they can plan around.
• A bakery or supermarket that throws away bread at closing time while a nearby community kitchen is short of basic ingredients.
• France passed a law in 2016 that required large supermarkets to donate unsold food rather than destroy it, which can be used as an example.
• Counter-argument: small corner shops lack the storage and staff to handle donations, so the rules should scale with the size of the business.
• Counter-argument: food safety liability worries shops, but legal protection for good-faith donations can address this fear.

Useful vocabulary

• surplus stock: Supermarkets often have surplus stock that is still safe to eat but cannot be sold.
• to go to waste: Tonnes of perfectly good bread go to waste every week in some large stores.
• to redirect food: The scheme aims to redirect food to people who would otherwise go without.
• food insecurity: Food insecurity is a growing concern in many towns, and donations can ease it.
• to be legally obliged to: Retailers could be legally obliged to offer unsold food to registered charities.
• a patchwork of voluntary schemes: At present there is only a patchwork of voluntary schemes, which means provision varies by area.
• cold chain: Chilled food must stay within a safe temperature, so the cold chain matters during transport.
• to bear the cost of: Small shops may not be able to bear the cost of collection.
• to incentivise: Tax relief could incentivise donations without making them compulsory for every business.
• best before date: Confusion about the best before date often leads shops to discard food that is still safe.

Common mistakes

• Describing voluntary donation schemes at length and never addressing the word 'law' in the question.
• Confusing 'best before' dates with safety, which weakens the argument about waste.
• Presenting the counter-argument about cost without showing how a law could still work in practice.
• Writing only about food banks and forgetting the supermarkets, who are the subject of the question.

Examiner tip: Name a specific mechanism for your law, such as tax relief or legal protection, so your position looks workable rather than just well intentioned.