5 Effective Ways to Reduce Food Waste

Besides the global hunger crisis, what some people might not know is that food waste is one of the biggest environmental issues that have a major negative impact on our planet. When large amounts of food waste are thrown in landfills, they emit methane, a greenhouse gas that is way more powerful than carbon dioxide and one of the main contributors to climate change. Tellingly, we need to be more cautious about our food waste to save our planet, plus we can play role in saving a lot of people who go hungry every day. With some actions from your side, you can make a change.

 

1. Don’t buy more than you need. Make a grocery shopping list based on what you need only. Don’t buy excess, especially with foods that have no shelf life such as fruits and vegetables so you don’t end up throwing away a lot of food that has gone bad.

 

2. Store and preserve your food wisely. Use airtight containers to keep your food fresh in the fridge for the longest time possible. Also, when it comes to canned food, once you open the can transfer any leftovers to containers.

 

3. Cook in accordance with your serving size and portions. There is no point in cooking large amounts of food and having a lot of leftovers. Make sure you cook just as little as your portion is. Also when it comes to filling your plate, it is better to start with small servings and if you need more then you can refill. But if you fill your plate with a lot of food you will end up tossing the rest in the garbage.

 

4. Make use of the leftovers. In case you’ve cooked more than you need, store any leftovers in your freezer. You can also donate any clean leftovers to various charitable organizations that distribute to hungry people or pack them to give out to homeless people around your area.

 

5. Compost if possible. While this option is not available to many of us who don't have gardens, composting is one way you can reuse food waste as energy for plants. This way, you will be enriching the soil by giving it nutrients, reducing the need for chemical fertilizer while at the same time lowering carbon footprint.