Hello viewers, have you ever found yourself feeling awful about wasting food?
Unfortunately it happens all the time, which is kind of a bummer because a lot of the population
doesn’t have access to your typical three meals a day.
But, there is a silver lining.
What if I told you that there is a way to reduce your food waste and save a bunch of
money?
How?
Keep watching.
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Now that that’s over and done with...
Let’s take a look at this scenario:
Let’s say you went to the grocery store, and bought enough vegetables, fruits, grains
and meat to last you an entire month.
This seems like a great idea at the time, but you live alone and just can’t eat all
this food in time.
Eventually, a lot of those fruits and veggies you spent your hard earned money on start
to go bad, and you’re forced to throw a big portion of this food away.
Don’t feel too bad if you’ve been there.
We all have, but it is a bad habit, and can really add up when you think about it.
Something else to think about is your carbon footprint.
Wasting food is just that, a waste.
Shopping locally will help reduce the amount of resources it takes to get the food from
the farm to your plate, but in the end if you don’t end up enjoying those delicious
veggies and fruit, it was all for nothing and those resources are still putting stress
on the planet.
Food for thought, huh?
Most of us have contributed, in one way or another, to the amount of food waste that
adds up each year.
Maybe it’s time we start thinking about the impact all this waste has on the planet,
and maybe we can try to find ways to reduce this waste, all while still enjoying access
to delicious food.
If you’re worried about the amount of food (and money) you’re wasting here are some
great things you can put into practice.
It starts with Smart Shopping
As we mentioned earlier, when you buy too much you run the risk of wasting it.
So, instead of buying a lot of food, try to only buy what you need.
Of course, this may sound like a lot of work as you would have to visit the grocery store
more times than you would like to.
But, in the long run this will help you reduce food waste and save a lot of money.
Additionally, we would suggest that you make a list of what you need, which will help you
to avoid impulsive shopping.
Hey!
Put down those cinnamon rolls.
Store Your Food Properly
Many of us have this horrible habit of storing foods like potatoes, tomatoes, garlic, cucumber
and onions inside the refrigerator.
Here’s a fun fact, these vegetables need to be kept at room temperature and not actually
inside the fridge.
Weird right?
Not only will you save precious fridge space, but your food will taste MUCH better, too.
Another important point is to be mindful of the foods that produce ethylene gas.
Ethylene is a plant hormone that accelerates the ripening process of food, which could
lead to premature ripening and eventually rotten food.
Ever put a bunch of peaches together and found that they all turned mouldy really fast?
Now you know why.
Fruits and vegetables that produce this gas include; bananas, avocados, tomatoes, pears,
green onions and cantaloupe among others.
These foods need to be stored away from foods such as apples, potatoes and berries, which
are ethylene sensitive.
Serve only What You will Eat
How many times have we left food on our plates after realizing we can't finish?
No, we’re not just talking about the huge portions in a restaurant, most of us have
done this at home too.
This culture of over-serving has slowly crept into our systems and has stayed with us to
form a pretty bad habit.
This bad habit not only leads to overeating but wasting food, too.
Save Your Leftovers
As we mentioned earlier, try to only serve what you will eat, but if you cannot do that
then here is a yummy alternative, leftovers!
If you’re in a restaurant and you can’t finish the food you ordered, try to bring
along a container so that you can use it to take the leftovers home!
Bringing your own container will also help out the planet and reduce waste, AND you’ll
have a delicious snack for later that you won’t have to cook.
It’ll also save you some cash which is a very nice feeling.
Don’t Let Your Fridge Get Cluttered
It is always good to have a fridge that is well-stacked, but overflowing isn’t great.
When you clutter up your fridge with too much food, you run the risk of food spoilage and
in turn more food waste.
To avoid this try keeping your fridge clutter-free.
Not only will you be able to see what you’ve bought, you’ll avoid the possibility of
your food going bad because you can see it.
Plus whenever you go to the store you won’t buy any food repeats because again, you can
see what you already have.
Additionally, try to keep your fridge clean.
This will help keep the germs away, thus helping you to avoid food spoilage.
Another good practice is to have a first-in and first-out approach when it comes to your
fridge.
For example, you bought a new carton of milk but you still have a little milk left from
the carton you bought the day before yesterday.
We would suggest that you keep the new carton behind the old one, so that you use up the
old carton first and nothing gets wasted.
Understanding How The Expiry Date Works
This can be a bit confusing, so let’s break down the expiry date.
When you keep packaged food in the fridge, take a look at the expiry date.
If you’ve bought butter, yogurt, chocolates or milk, the package will always have a date
printed somewhere on the label with a "Best Before" date.
Is this a suggestion?
Can you still eat or drink something past it’s “best” date?
Sometimes, It depends on the food.
In this scenario, we suggest you use your discretion before you decide to consume or
throw away the product.
However, if the product has been in your refrigerator for more than three days past its expiration
date then we would suggest that you say goodbye.
You don’t’ want to make yourself sick.
Apart from these, there are also a few other ways you can reduce food waste.
Give Your Water A Better Taste
Sometimes water can be boring.
We’re supposed to drink a lot of this life giving liquid in a day, but realistically
few of us actually drink the recommended amount.
Which is 8, eight-ounce glasses a day by the way.
That’s a lot of drinking.
But what does this have to do with food waste?
We’re getting there.
To spice up all this water you’re supposed to drink, try adding citrus to the mix.
Apples or cucumbers are a fantastic addition to your regular water routine and will give
it a tangy or sweet taste.
If you wanna get really fancy, you can add herbs or berries to your water.
Oh la la.
Now, if you have extra leftovers from the fruits or berries you used, you don’t have
to throw it away, instead try saving them for a delicious afternoon pick me up smoothie.
Zero waste and lots of nutrition!cooking.
Speaking of Zero Waste…
Reuse Edible Scraps
Often while cutting vegetables for curry or broth, we tend to cut off portions that are
still edible.
Instead, you can reuse those scraps to make a delicious broth.
It’s really simple and the more variety in the scraps, the more flavorful it will
be.
Just add olive oil and butter and now you’re really
In fact, it’s not just vegetable scraps we’re talking about when reusing the scraps.
The same thing can be done when it comes to meat bones by adding veggies, herbs and water.
This will not only reduce waste and save money, but make your tummy happy too.
Since, we are discussing reusing food instead of just throwing it all away.
Do you remember our video, "Is almond milk a good alternative for cow's milk?"
If you have not checked it out yet, we suggest that you do.
In that video, we have mentioned how you can use almond milk to make your own homemade
moisturizer.
Sounds cool, right?
So, the next time your almond milk goes past expiry date, you know what to do.
Woah!
That was a lot of information to give out on one video.
That is my queue, gotta run.
Do you know any other methods to reduce food waste and save money?
Let us know in the comments section below, we would love to hear from you.