The supermarket says its ‘Free on Last Day of Life’ initiative has the potential to give away more than 1.3 million items worth £500,000 a year to Iceland’s customers while cutting food waste.

All food items ordered and delivered by Iceland have previously had a shelf life of at least two days.

The launch across all 1,000 of the supermarket’s sites follows a successful trial in 40 stores with more than 17,000 items given away for free and customers receiving an average refund of £1.58 per order.

The process does not require any additional action by the customer. If an item ordered is the only one left and has the same day date it will be scanned, labelled and placed in the shopping cart as normal.

The customer will be made aware of the free item ahead of delivery and will not be charged the original price.

All chilled, fresh, cakes, bread and morning goods will be included in the scheme.

‘Huge priority’

Iceland Foods managing director Richard Walker said: “Reducing food waste is a huge priority for us as we continue to reduce our impact on the environment.

“We know that shelf life plays a big role in the creation of surplus food so we to have find an innovative way to combat this within our stores and via our online shopping.

“Our Free on Last Day of Life scheme not only helps reduce food waste but also supports our customers.

“We know cost is key to many of our shoppers and this new initiative allows us to offer them the opportunity to reduce their weekly shopping bills as well as helping to reduce food waste.”

Meanwhile the premises leased to Iceland in Omagh has gone on the market for £625,000.

The retailer’s lease on the standalone Kevlin Road building dates back to 1995. Its current £70,000 a year lease, last renewed in 2015, runs until August 2025.