As we move into the week with many holiday parties, food waste is a challenge.
We touched on this during our reducing waste post a few weeks ago.
Moving into the new year, this is a great area to raise awareness and look to make small changes in the year ahead – this can have a positive impact on your health, your finances, and the environment.
This post will focus on food waste in general and can also apply to the busy holiday season.
Below are some headlines on household food waste from a study that was done in partnership between Gallup and MITRE this year. The detailed report can be found here.
Source: MITRE Food Waste Report
While not everyone is concerned with the environment, most would likely want the $1,500 wasted back in our pocket.
The two challenges I observe during the holidays and everyday are overbuying and leftovers.
Overbuying
With busy lives, many of us only shop for groceries once a week. We buy what we think we will need, but then we get carryout one extra time, forget to pack a lunch, or just don’t feel like preparing what we purchased and make something “quick” (usually from pantry foods) instead. By the end of the week, we have fruits, vegetables, and meats that have gone bad.
Try this: Watch weekly patterns. At the end of the week, we can evaluate how many meals got “diverted” to other meal solutions. Then, we can try purchasing less than that amount the following week. Continuing to evaluate and adjust we can find our right level.
Leftovers
The second challenge is leftovers. Many people package up what wasn’t eaten at a meal, but often those containers just sit in the refrigerator until they go bad.
Try this: Leftovers are tricky. Some people enjoy eating them and others don’t. The first step in reducing leftover waste is knowing which type you are. For those who enjoy the leftovers, plan them into the week. If we make a larger meal on Monday, we can plan the leftovers for Wednesday night or for lunches a couple days.
For those who don’t like leftovers, consider making a ½ batch of large recipes. Looking for recipes that use leftover items is another alternative. Two websites that can help you with ideas are MyFridgeFood and SuperCook.
Your Turn
Do you have food waste at the end of the week?
Is your challenge overbuying, leftovers, or both?
Which idea above could you try next week to reduce your household waste?