Keeping an eye on our plates can help with the pennies and our planet too.
Overbuying food is not only an expensive waste of money but food waste ends up in landfill sites where it rots and produces methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.
The UK produces the highest amount of food waste in Europe, an estimated 14 million tonnes of food waste each year, according to the European Commission. And, shockingly, a third of the food produced globally goes to waste.
Making a difference is simple and here are a few ideas to help:
Shelfie – Photograph your fridge shelves before shopping so you don’t buy unnecessary items
Eat Me First Shelf – Use the top shelf of your fridge to prioritise foods by their use-by date, and eat those first
Picky Tea – Save yourself time in meal prep and layout leftovers and bits and pieces to eat up
Make It Up Mondays – Challenge yourself to create a meal from what’s left in your fridge on a Monday
Pantry Spring Clean – Have a spring clean of your food cupboards and donate items you are unlikely to use to your local food bank.
In 2021, many of us are looking for ways we can make a difference to the issues we have created environmentally. Food waste is an easy issue to tackle in the home so, this year, remember the 3P’s – Plates, Pennies, Planet!
Author - Lawrence Dew