In my first year in college, I had a classmate that was really passionate about the environment and she told me something that blew my mind. She said, “If food waste was a country it would be the third-largest pollutant in the world” (FAO). Before coming to college I had never really thought about food waste being bad for the environment, but the more I read the more I realize just how bad it is. In the US we waste around 30-40% of our food (USDA). That is crazy! A lot of this happens on a larger scale, like food going bad before it even hits the shelves of a grocery store, but a lot of it also comes from households. Here are a few ways that you can reduce your food waste.
- Order Rationally
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I am so guilty of getting to a restaurant and ordering a ton of food because I’m starving, but then leaving half of it on my plate. Try to order realistic portions when you go out and if you still end up with leftovers take them home to eat later.
- Eat Left Overs
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Lots of people keep leftovers, but do they always get eaten? I would say a lot of the time the answer is no. My first tip for making sure that leftovers get eaten is to put them front and center in the fridge. I know that a lot of time they get pushed to the back and forgotten about until they’ve gone bad. You can also story your leftovers in something clear so you can easily see what it is. Finally, plan when you are going to eat them or designate one night a week to be “left over night.”
- Compost
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I haven’t actually started composting yet, but I am so fascinated by it can’t wait to start once I get my first apartment. The best part about composting is that it isn’t just leftover food, but food scraps! Besides food, you can also compost new paper and cardboard too. If you have a garden the soil that you produce would also help your plants. It’s overall just a really great thing to do for the environment.
- Donate Unwanted Food
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Even with so much food waste, there are still people who go hungry in America. A great way to help with both of these problems is to donate food you know you aren’t going to eat. If you buy a new brand of something at the store but decide you don’t like it, don’t just toss the box. Try to either give it away to a friend or donate it to a food pantry.
- Know How to Store Your Food
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All food has a shelf life, especially fresh products that don’t have any preservatives in them. When I used to buy spinach I would get so frustrated because I could never eat all of it before it went bad. Then I did some research and found that storing it in a container with dry paper towels will help it last longer. Freezing food that you won’t use right away is another great way to make sure it won’t go to waste.
There are hundreds of other ways to reduce your food waste. I recommend counting how many times you go to toss food this next week and then try adding these tips into your daily life to see the impact you can have!