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On Climate Action, There’s No Time — Or Food — To Waste
Cupboards, shelves, and a refrigerator all fully stocked with food does one’s heart and mood a world of good. We are, after all, dependent upon food for survival—and especially during the world in lockdown, a trip to the grocery store feels euphoric too. But a week or ten days down the line, all of a sudden, you find yourself throwing out the very food that you felt so good about buying, because – expiry dates! What’s more, morally and economically, food waste leads to food insecurity; we’re throwing away calories and nutritional value desperately needed by millions of people. According to the U.N., if food waste were a country, it would be the world’s third-largest greenhouse gas emitter, only behind China and the U.S.
As we celebrate Earth day, let us pledge to end food waste. Remember it starts at home.
Here are Top 5 ways to cut down on food waste:
1. Don’t over buy: Keep track of what you’ve bought and used.
2. Check the use-by dates of fresh food when you buy it: These are the dates to take notice of, rather than the best-before dates. Only buy what you can use before it expires.
3. Plan ahead: Think about what you’re going to cook and how you’ll use the leftovers.
4. Love your freezer : Use your weekends to batch-cook and freeze.
5. Pickle Almost Anything : Pickling is a savvy way to preserve veggies on the verge of turning for a few more weeks. An easy brine for carrots, green beans, or zucchini?
You can also consider home composting.
