Think back to the last 30 days. How much food from your home was thrown away? Fruit? Veggies? Leftovers? Per www.foodprint.org, individual households are responsible for the largest portion of all food waste. It’s estimated that US households waste 76 BILLION pounds of food per year. Yes, with a B. The average person wastes 238 pounds of food each year and that amounts to 21% of all the food they buy. Doing this is costing YOU about $1,800 per year. The areas with the most waste include fruit, veggies, followed by dairy, meat and seafood.
You can waste food in several ways.
1) Food that goes bad
2) Uneaten left overs
3) Confusing expiration date on labels
4) Buying too much food
5) Poor planning
Food that Goes Bad
To avoid food going bad in the refrigerator or freezer, you need to make sure that you are aware of what you have on hand at any moment. If you don’t realize that you have fresh broccoli, there is a high likelihood that it will go bad. If you’re a type A personality, you can actually keep a spreadsheet or list on the outside of the refrigerator of the current contents. This way, you don’t have to open up the refrigerator every time you’re trying to figure out what to eat. I know that this seems a little extreme, but it will help you realize what you have on hand and will decrease the amount of food that is wasted by spoiling. If you’re not willing to go to that extreme, just keep an eye of what you have in the fridge and make sure that you can see everything. Organization of the areas that tend to go bad easily can help avoid things falling through the cracks.
If you think something is going to go bad, package it up and put it in the freezer for another time. For example, if you made a wonderful casserole, but got tired of eating it as left overs, freeze it and bring it out in a few weeks. Or if you have fresh vegetables that you purchased but just haven’t had time to prepare, bag them and put them in the freezer as well. The key is to catch the items before they actually spoil. However, there are items that don’t freeze well, like cream cheese, celery, carrots, sour cream, yogurt, and apples. In those instances, you need to make sure that you are eating those items. Another tip is to wait as long as possible to wash your berries because once cut, they will mold quicker.
Uneaten Left Overs
How many times have you either brought something home from a restaurant or had left overs from a home cooked meal where you ended up throwing it away? Personally, I have done this many times--unfortunately. After a while, you may get tired of eating the same old left overs, so you end up throwing it away. This is especially common when you have family members who refuse to eat them. I have those! When it gets to that point, package them up and toss them in the freezer to bring out at another time. Pay attention to ingredients though because some creams don’t freeze well. **See blog post Hacks for Fast Food and Home Eating, April 22, 2021 for tips on how to make the most of left overs and going out, including items that don’t freeze well.
Confusing Expiration Dates on Labels
When purchasing items (especially dairy), it’s crucial to pay close attention to those darned expiration dates. Have you ever asked your roommate, spouse, or child, “Does this smell bad?” We’ve all been there. If you tend to have a recurring problem with expired items, I would also recommend either a spreadsheet or notepad with items showing expiration dates so they don’t fall through the cracks. You are literally throwing money down the drain when missing expirations dates. Be aware that on dairy, the date is sale date, not necessarily good until date, so they may last a few additional days. The dates refer to food quality not safety. If you consistently throw away milk, consider buying a half gallon instead. Don’t use a lot of mayo? Skip the large jars and choose a smaller option. You may even get packets from restaurants if you rarely use it.
Buying Too Much Food
Buying too much food is prime for waste. This is especially true for fresh food. Pay attention to overbuying. Specifically, items that cannot be frozen. Carrots, celery, and cream cheese are items that won’t freeze well. If you buy items for a specific recipe, make sure you actually cook it. Hopefully any items can be frozen if you don’t get to them. For items that can’t be, make sure you eat them up! A way to help combat overbuying is to NOT shop when hungry. This can get you in trouble where you end up spending a lot more on groceries and purchasing more items than necessary.
Poor Planning
Poor planning is the last way where people waste food. If you plan for a large meal and then realize that half of your family members are going to be at a baseball tournament, you’re either left with way too much food or you end up not cooking it at all. Very frustrating. Another thing that’s common is that you purchase a ton of food for meal prepping and then get lazy and never do it. So much waste of food and money. Just say NO! When making your grocery list, make sure that you put a quantity on your items instead of just writing down “chicken broth,” be very specific and notate 16 oz chicken broth. This helps you to not be confused and overbuying at the store when you’re uncertain of the amount needed. This also prevents your partner/child from either over or under buying your request. I would recommend the grocery app called AnyList and you can share it with your family members so at any time, everyone is aware of what is needed at the store and can be updated for all to know.
To avoid over cooking, don’t plan to make a new meal every night or you’ll never be able to finish those leftovers. Bank in an “eat the leftovers” night a few times a week depending on your need. You can even google other recipes that you can use with ingredients and left overs. Extra chicken? Turn the baked chicken into a quesadilla.
Get Creative
An option to avoid waste is to be creative with food. That means using the food to make something that you can freeze or that you can eat right away. If you have bad bananas, don’t throw them away, make banana bread. Even if you have to make several batches, banana bread freezes well. Another option with bananas is to peel and freeze them, so they can be thrown into smoothies or even cake or cookie recipes. These are all steps to reduce waste.
When making baked goods like brownies, cupcakes, or cookies, you inevitably have some crumbs from broken items left over. Instead of throwing them in the garbage, put them in a plastic bag and put them in the freezer for ice cream or dessert toppers. At ice cream and yogurt stores, people pay additional money for cookie crumbs, brownie bites, and so many more. Even at the grocery store, you can buy Oreo crumbles. The good news is that you can make your own from the crumbs. You save the money from purchasing these items and reduce waste at the same time. Win on all fronts.
There are many of you out there who don’t like to eat the end of the loaf of bread. Instead of throwing this away, you can put them in a blender or food processor to make breadcrumbs when needed for preparing and cooking meals. If your children ask you to cut off the crusts of bread, you can do the same thing. If you prefer seasoned breadcrumbs, you can add your own spices as well. This mix will be fine in the freezer. I checked out www.thrifty.com to get the following recipe.
“Make fresh bread crumbs from stale bread OR from toasted bread by placing torn bread into the bowl of a food processor or using a blender. If all else fails, put in a bowl and use your hand mixer and blend until the crumbs are fine or the desired consistency. I suggest now is the time to add favorite seasonings such as onion or garlic powder with some dried parsley. Store in a resealable bag in the freezer for up to six months and have handy any time you have a need. Please note, you do not have to defrost the bread crumbs if they are totally dried before freezing.” **Special note: I’ve also done it with fresh bread and it works the same way.
Did you know that only 5% of food is composted? Food waste is responsible for eight times the energy waste off farm-level food losses due to the energy used along the food supply chain and preparation. All of the time, energy, and expense that went into those products along the way. Wouldn’t you like to save the $1,800 the average US family wastes in food each year? I know that I would. Take the steps mentioned above to reduce your waste and you’ll also notice it on your bottom line.
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