Hello friends! On the 26th April it was Stop Food Waste Day 2023 – a day that was created to raise awareness for the global food waste crisis, and encourage people to change their habits and behaviours toward food and food waste.
So, I thought I would share on here what I do daily to tackle food waste, and give some tips to reduce food waste. Some of these things I’m sure you already do, as they are very common, but they are genuinely habits that have helped me reduce my food waste massively. I am obviously not perfect, and I do throw some food away from time to time, but there is no comparison with my food waste from a few years ago!
Some Information About Food Waste
Food waste has been an environmental concern for a long time, not just because of how unethical and wasteful it is to throw food away, but because it also contributes to climate change. In the UK, some 9 million tonnes of food is wasted per year. All that food ends up in landfill, and although we think of food as biodegradable as it’s organic, the food still releases methane into the atmosphere which impacts the ozone layer and traps heat in the atmosphere. Unsurprisingly, fruit and veg are the most wasted foods, with 28% being thrown away every year.
Needless to say, food waste is up there on my list of eco-issues to tackle, along with plastic/single plastic use! And you’ll see with this post that the two go hand in hand, really, and that these tips to reduce food waste can be applied to single use plastic too.
Sources: Food Waste Facts and Eco Experts
5 Tips to Reduce Food Waste
I’ve picked five tips to reduce food waste at home to share with you. There are many more when it comes to restaurants and work places for example, but I’m focusing on home today as it’s mostly where my own food waste happens!
1. Make a list, and meal plan!
My first tip to reduce food waste is probably one that you have heard a million times – but it’s tried and tested, and it really works. Planning out the meals we’re going to have in a week (we do our food shop on a Sunday, so we plan from Monday to Sunday every week) and how many portions it will make has helped us reduce our waste a lot, as we only make a list of and buy what we need for that week. I do try to account for any cravings we may have (we consume a lot of bread…) but overall, I stick to the list. An added bonus is that our food shop is now a little bit cheaper because of all the planning that goes into it!
2. Organise your fridge/cupboard
How many times have you looked into one of your food cupboards and gone, “I forgot this was here!” and it went off three years ago? I can’t count how many times this has happened to me. So I now make a conscious effort to organise my cupboards more: I put some different foods in different boxes (one for spices, one for small baking ingredients, etc) and have a monthly clear out to check for lost tins and small packaging! I try to put foods with early sell by dates at the front both in my cupboards and in the fridge. When we get yogurts for example, I’ll put any yogurts from last week’s shops at the front, and the new ones at the back. Simple enough, but it makes such a difference. That would be my second most used tip to reduce food waste!
3. Store your food properly
Like I mentioned above, fruit and veg are the most thrown away food group in the UK. That is partly because they are not stored properly. So, my third tip to reduce food waste is to learn to store your food properly. For example, potatoes should be stored in the fridge to avoid spoiling, and should most vegetables really! Vegetables should be stored away from fruit, to prevent them from ripening too quickly. Do not wash your veg until right before cooking them, as they will rot quicker if they have moisture in them. You can store them in an airtight container to keep them fresh for longer.
Any cupboard food should be in a dry, cool, and dark place, so avoid storing food under the sink, for example, as it will create moisture.
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4. Freeze the food!
Again, a tried and tested tip: freezing foods. This one may not be accessible to all, as it does require to have a freezer in the first place with a little bit of room. I tend to freeze absolutely everything nowadays: made too many baked goods? Freeze them. Bought too many vegetables? Blanch and freeze them. Underestimated how many portions a dish was going to make? Let cool and freeze the extra portions. You can genuinely freeze pretty much anything, even cheese and milk! I freeze bread, too. This is one of my best tips to reduce food waste, absolutely couldn’t live without it!
5. Buy smarter
The last of my tips to reduce food waste is all about being smarter from the get go, with the type of food you purchase. I always try to purchase food that’s already in a smart container, while trying to tackle single plastic – for example, I buy any sauces in glass jars if I can, and it’s a lot easier to scoop them out than a plastic tube, and you can also reuse them! I also buy loose fruit and veg to avoid the moisture created by the plastic bags it usually comes in. I also use the Too Good To Go app to pick up treats from time to time, to help combat restaurant waste.
Which tips have you got to add to this list?
Em ♥
Such a great post! I knew that this was a problem but did not know exactly how big. Thank you for sharing some tips that I can use to be better about things.
It’s one of those things that isn’t talked about as much, but it is a big climate change issue. Hopefully you find this helpful!
Having a meal plan is very important to reduce food waste. That’s what I did when I was living in Manchester. I need to start doing it again. Thank you for sharing.
I really think so! If you’re able to, it’s a great way to help reduce food waste.
These tips are all fantastic! And I’m happy that I follow most of them, I know so many people who don’t store their produce correctly and blame the stores when it goes wrong. I think this should be more commonly taught on how to store and keep produce fresh properly. And buying smart is a great tip because if you buy everything all at once there’s no way you’ll be able to eat it and keep it fresh. It’s better to do two rounds at the store. Thanks for sharing!
I agree! I think people can be put off by going to the shops as if you’re working/a parent you probably don’t have time, but it makes such an impact on food waste. Thank you for commenting!
Your tips are brilliant Ems! Since moving to Italy, we have started planning our little allotment and are loving growing our own vegetables!
That’s fantastic, I wish I had a little allotment of my own!
Took a while to plan and follow up with it with how to reduce the waste. Something we need to do because it’s not good to waste food.
It’s so important to try your best!
Thank you for sharing especially the part about storing food correctly.
I’m glad you found it helpful!
this was such an informative post em! i’ve been better about shopping smarter and not over purchasing at the grocery store. i hate when food goes to waste. but if any food does, it teaches me that we probably don’t need to buy it in the future.
I’m glad it was helpful! well done, every little helps x