This weekend I finally cleaned out my fridge. It was scary.
In December we had the holidays, followed by the mad rush to get back into the normal swing of everyday life, and as a result, my refrigerator hadn't had a good going-over in quite some time. I lost a lot of food due to my negligence, and I'm sure I lost quite a bit of money to boot.
Food waste is a serious problem. As of 2011, it's estimated that 1.3 billion tons of food (about 1/3 of total worldwide food production) were lost. In developed countries like ours, most of that waste happens at the consumption stage, when the food has already reached the consumer.
I was pretty shocked at how much I had to throw in the compost bin and trash can, and it made me wonder how I might cut back on food waste in 2012.
My plan:
1. Plan my meals. It always feels like a hassle, but I just do better when I have a plan. It cuts down on shopping time, helps me eat healthier, and I know what's in my pantry and fridge so that fewer products go to waste.
2. Shop my kitchen first. Look at what you have around you before you spend. You might have the kitchen staple you've just put on your list, so check your fridge and your pantry before you head to the store.
3. Store produce properly. Tired of finding a drawer of wilted, slimy vegetables? Some fruits emit ethylene, an odorless, colorless gas that speeds ripening and can lead to the premature decay of nearby ethylene-sensitive vegetables. It's important to store foods that give off ethylene gas separately from those that are sensitive to it. Check out this guide for tips on how to store produce and when to eat it.
4. Use less-than-perfect produce to make stock. If you've never done this before, it's pretty easy and uses up any discarded vegetable bits you've got in your fridge. This website has several different stocks to make with instructions: Reluctant Gourmet.
5. Eat leftovers. When I put mine away now, I put them at the very front of the fridge at eye level. Sometimes I even write the date on the top of the box, so I know how long I have.
If I follow these rules, I should have a much more pleasant fridge, and less of my money and my food will end up in the scrap heap.
What about you? How do you reduce food waste? Share your ideas with us.