Apparently 40% of all food produced in the world is wasted. The reality is, we all waste lots of money when it comes to our food production- but there are a lot of ways youcan reduce your own personal contribution by following these tips!
Plan Your Meals
It’s always a good idea to have a list when you’re shopping, but it can be especially important if you know what recipes will make up for your weekly dinners. By checking the what you already have, you won’t end up with too many of one item.
You’ll also be less likely to throw things out that you bought on a whim and didn’t end up using before the due date.
Freeze Leftovers
A freezer is a great way to save all the healthy stuff you get from farmers’ markets or your friend’s garden. You can use it for meal prep, stews, and even making soup at home!
Cook the Right Amounts
If you’re cooking for two, consider cutting the recipe in half to avoid wasting your time with leftovers. Alternatively, plan ahead and take the leftovers for lunch the next day.
Rotate, rotate, rotate!
As you put food away, make sure to use the old items before using the new ones. For shelf-stable foods like mayonnaise that are not refrigerated until opening them, keep out of the fridge and consume within the correct time so they don’t spoil!
Have a Leftover Day
The idea of a leftovers night is genius. There are so many tasty dishes that you can enjoy even just with what’s leftover from the week before, and cooking all those delicious meals at once will give you more time to spend on other things!
Check your cupboards
You’ll save money and time by making a list of your favourite dishes, noting what ingredients are needed for each dish. Next, go through the refrigerator and cupboards so you don’t miss anything! That way if something is missing from this week’s meal plan then you can quickly grab them while grocery shopping instead of forgetting about it at
home!
Use Scraps Wisely
A good way to reduce your waste is by composting food scraps. If you do not have a garden, there are still options for reducing the amount of waste that goes into landfills like making soup or stock with your leftover vegetable scraps.
Learn Proper Storage Techniques
There is a right way and a wrong place to store each item that you purchase. Get the most use out of what you buy by being informed about how your items should be stored correctly from day one so they don’t get ruined before their time!
Preserve Your Own
You might think that cabbage is only for roast dinners. But have you tried making it into sauerkraut? It is a great way to preserve and make the most of vegetables before they expire! You can preserve, can, or pickle lots of different foods to extend their shelf life and make new and interesting dishes with them.
Eat Expired Food
It’s not uncommon for fresh food to be good well past the date it was made. A lot of people don’t know this, but most expiration dates are more about when stores need to sell by than any sort of safety warning.
Many foods indeed have an “expiration” or a “sell-by” date on their packaging and cans; however, these labels refer specifically to retailers who must remove them from shelves if they remain unsold after some prearranged amount of time has passed. Most canned goods will keep safely in storage at cool temperatures until as long as 7 days after their original sale day.
With a little planning and thought, you can eliminate most food waste. If somehow you end up with extras due to too many sales or something else then give it to friends or family, or donate to a local foodbank. We should never throwaway unopened food.