Live Smartly- Reduce The Waste
Have you ever thought about how much food people waste every day? All around us, food is trashed for one reason or another. Whatever way it happens, wasting food is just not a good thing.
To start with, one area where people waste food is when we dine out. Sometimes people order way too much food at a restaurant, don't eat it all and don't take the leftovers home to finish the next day. Countless times, I've seen people ordering a huge salad or entree made for a giant but then eating like a bird and leaving 90% of it on their plates and walking out empty handed. I wish that were an exaggeration, but it isn't.
Another big area where people waste a lot of food is at home, either through inadequate food management or through carelessness. There are some things you can do however, to reduce how much food is wasted in your household and as a result, save money!
Don't Overstock Your Pantry- Be sure you can see what food items you have at all times. This requires not having too many items in your pantry. Sometimes we don't see what we actually have because some items are hidden behind others.
Check Your Pantry and Refrigerator Before Heading To Grocery Store- You just may already have what you thought you had to buy.
Write a Grocery List- Before heading out, write a list of the items that you need to buy. It's a good idea to keep a running list on your kitchen counter, and then add to the list as you run out of items.
Don't Overbuy Food- Only buy what you will realistically prepare and consume within a certain time frame. Just because something is on sale, it doesn't mean you have to buy so much of it. Studies have also shown that if you go to the grocery store hungry, you will most likely overbuy.
Don't Always Buy The Largest Size of an Item- Even though a larger size might have a lower unit price, you may not be able to consume it all and end up wasting it anyway, due to spoilage. A smaller more manageable size might end up costing less in the end.
Periodically Use Up All Of Your Pantry Contents- Every Few Months let your pantry run bare in order to consume all or most items. This way you will likely use up your items before their expiration dates. Remember that it's totally OK to run out of some items every so often.
Use Common Sense With Expiration Dates- Do your research in regards to Expiration Dates. Until more logical, less confusing and consistent labeling is put into place, use your own judgement. Perform a simple sniff test and visual inspection of items before you toss them into the trash. Sometimes a perfectly edible food item is trashed unnecessarily because the expiration date or "Use By" date was not really accurate or it was misleading.
Be Aware of How Fortunate You Are- There are many less fortunate people around the world, that don't have enough food to eat, so treat your food as a blessing.
Hopefully, integrating some basic habits into your food buying and management routine will decrease the amount of food you waste. Remember that the less food you waste translates to more money staying in your pocket that can be directed more consciously to something else.