Simple Tips to Reduce Food Waste
The prices of food nowadays are continually soaring high. However, despite this fact, it is very common for most households to have food waste. In an individual household, the cost of food waste a week is very expensive if you will put a price tag on them. And not only that, food waste also has a big impact on the water and energy resources which in turn contribute to the effects of global warming. If we can only individually reduce our food waste, we will not only save money but also help lessen the negative environmental impact of food waste.
Here are some of the simple tips on how to reduce food waste:
1. Plan meals ahead of time.
Plan your weekly or monthly meals ahead of time so you can also prepare a grocery list for your kitchen needs. This way you can prevent grocery shopping at an impulse or grabbing food stuff you don’t actually need. Without a grocery list, the common tendency of most people is to buy things that they think will be needed and not what they really need. This oftentimes results in a lot of food waste especially on fresh products which are easily perishable. If you plan meals ahead of time, you can be more efficient in using your available ingredients and you can also ensure that any leftovers will be incorporated in your meals.
2. Organize your refrigerator.
Organize your refrigerator in such a way that fresh produce such as vegetables and fruits are easily accessible and not hidden behind other food stuff or at the back of the shelves. The same is true with milk and fresh juices which should be consumed immediately after opening. You can easily overlook food products in the refrigerator if they are cluttered and this will cost you unnecessary expense in repurchasing items which you already have. It will also result in food waste as food items go bad, molded or wilted before they are discovered to be there.
To organize your refrigerator, make sure that you have a separate section for vegetables, fruits, meats, dairy products, and other miscellaneous items. This way you can easily keep track of the food that will expire soon, vegetables that will be wilted if not used and so on.
3. First in, first out.
In connection with organizing your refrigerator, it is also best to have a system of first in, first out in terms of consuming meat and fresh produce. To do this, you need to indicate the date on which fruits, vegetables and meat are purchased. Those with earliest dates should be put on the front of the shelf and they should be consumed first before later purchases can be used. This way, you can avoid throwing away spoiled food products. For example, if you are planning on what to cook for your next meal, your dish should involve vegetables or meat products that are on the front of the shelf.
4. Recycle leftover food.
If you have any leftover food from your last meal, try to incorporate it in your next meal. You can reinvent a new dish out of leftover food. If you are not sure how to do it, there is a lot of helpful information that you can find on the Internet.
5. Compost food waste.
If despite every planning and organizing, there are still food waste in your kitchen, composting them is a way to go. Composting food waste can give you high quality fertilizers for your garden. The Internet is a rich source of information on how to make compost even in a very limited backyard space.
These tips are very simple and doable in your home. If you follow these simple tips, you will be saving instead of wasting food.
