Did you know that 40% of America’s food isn’t actually eaten? While at the same time there are 50 million Americans going hungry? Look at those numbers! Then add to those some more terrifying statistics: we use 1/
Did you know that 40% of America’s food isn’t actually eaten? While at the same time there are 50 million Americans going hungry? Look at those numbers! Then add to those some more terrifying statistics: we use 1/4 of the freshwater supply and about 300 MILLION barrels of oil to power the production of that food. Food which just gets thrown away because it is improperly stored or handled. Food which we discard because we don’t know what to do with it or forget that we purchased. And all of that food waste ends up in landfills, producing harmful levels of methane. Yuck.
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So what does food waste have to do with you? Let’s look at some quick numbers. The USDA sets a “low cost” weekly food budget at $191 – which means that $76.40 a week is, on average, simply converted into food waste. That’s $3972.80 a year! Insane. Nobody can afford to waste that much money, least of all a family on a low cost food budget! And if you’re trying to eat a healthy diet, it’s even more imperative that you can avoid food waste, since so much of what we spend our money on is perishable.
So what can you do to reduce or avoid food waste? Here’s how!
Original photo credit: Lisa Norwood
21 Ways to Reduce Food Waste & Save Money
- Organize your refrigerator. Know where your food is. If you store food haphazardly in the refrigerator, it’s easy to overlook that lettuce at the back, or not see the fruit hidden in the crisper drawer. Divide your fridge into zones so you can keep track of what is in it. I have mine split so that produce is on the top shelf, eggs / dairy is on the next, meat has its own shelf next, then water on the bottom. Longer lasting produce goes into the drawers beneath and I have a separate drawer for cold cuts and similar. Organize your fridge how it suits you best.
- Store foods that will go bad fastest at eye level, like berries or meat, not hidden away in drawers.
- Implement the “Eat First!” tray. The bottom of my fridge has a cheap plastic tray on it. Something like this with a lip on the edge is perfect. Anything that is leftover from meals or odd scraps goes onto it, along with anything that is going to expire soon and needs to be eaten. This helps me prioritize what I am going to cook first.
- K