Cutting the Waste: Practical Solutions for Reducing Food Waste
How much food goes to waste in the United States? According to Feedingamerica.org, “people waste 80 million tons of food every year, which equals 149 billion meals. They throw away over $444 billion worth of food annually. Shockingly, they waste 38% of all the food in America.” These are alarming statistics but a statistic that can easily be changed if we each commit to adding a few small habits to our routines. Check out these 3 practical tips to help you save money and reduce food waste at the same time!
1) Invest in silicone freezer trays: One of the ways I find myself wasting food is when leftovers don’t get eaten quickly enough. It is both wasteful and expensive to throw half your refrigerator out every week because food doesn’t get eaten quickly enough. What is my solution? Whenever I have leftovers like sauces, soups, casseroles, etc. I freeze all but a serving or two in silicone freezer trays. By doing this I reduce waste, and save myself time. When I need a quick meal, I simply defrost something from my freezer and viola, no waste!
2) Place my vegetable scraps in a freezer bag: Whenever I cook, I make sure to collect all the vegetables scraps in a plastic freezer bag and place it in the freezer. When the bag gets full, I dump the vegetables in an Instant Pot with 8-9 cups of water. I set the Instant Pot to 30 minutes on manual and then allow a natural release. Once cooled, I strain the vegetable mixture and place the liquid in Mason Jars or silicone freezer trays to be frozen until you need to use them.
3) Use a countertop compost bin: Invest in a countertop compost bin which will allow you to take any of your food waste from cooking, scraps from dishes, and leftovers that otherwise would end up in your trash can and keep them in a container that is built to remain odor free and keep pests out. Once the bin is full you can deliver the compost to your local farmers market or keep a compost pile in your yard. Compost is used as an additive to soil to enhance nutrients in the soil.