Not the best start…
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Image by iStock / mw_listing
It’s a good thing that it’s still early in the month—because our waste-less-eat-healthier plan completely fell apart over the past few days, and it feels like we are back to square one.
What happened is I did a partial shopping trip before Maia and I headed off for a trip to Mexico. But when Evan needed something more, he shopped on his way home from work without double-checking on what we already had in the fridge. The result was I came home to a fridge full of old food and had to toss out everything from stinky chicken thighs to a half tin of dried-up olives. And tonight I need to figure out a dish that includes polenta, flank steak and spinach or a few more things will be tossed away as well.
It’s no wonder that our food systems are so messed up. If my own family can’t feed ourselves a healthy diet without excessive waste, it shouldn’t surprise me that we are doing such a poor job of feeding ourselves as a planet. And we really are doing a bad job of it—a recent report released by the UN emphasized that the only way we’ll avoid increasing world hunger is to better manage food loss and food waste, especially in light of falling food production.
Five steps to reducing food waste:
So, while home waste may seem insignificant compared to global losses (one shocking statistic is that approximately 30 million tons of fish are discarded at sea annually) starting today we are focusing back on the five easy steps that take us closer to reducing household waste:
1. Planning meals before shopping.
2. Making a shopping list based on a search through the fridge and cupboards.
3. Making meals according to what is on hand. Check out this fun site for ideas on how to cook with what you have.
4. Cooking the right amount of food for our needs.
5. Eating leftovers.
Just these few steps can go a long way toward saving money and cutting carbon emissions from our home, but while I’ve been researching the issue I’ve become fascinated by the huge problem that food waste has become.
Let me know what solutions you’ve come across—for your home or for the larger community. In the weeks to come, I’ll start listing local resources and interview a few food rescuers.
Yes I can get creative and cook something out almost anything, but always checking what needs to be used up in the fridge is a must. Another great tip is just toss food you know you won't use in the freezer. Keep in mind if it was only going to last another day or 2 in the fridge you have to use it right away when you defrost it. Some things don't freeze that well, unless you cook them first. I will cook up veggies like peppers, zucchini, spinach, onions (meat could go in as well if it needs to be used) put in a little tomato sauce and freeze it. I use only a little sauce to use less space in the freezer, and it makes the mixture more solid so there's less air around the veggies so they won't dry out as fast in the freezer. Then I can pull this out and use it as "starter" for pasta sauce, soup, or add stewed tomatoes, and cooked, sliced spicy italian sausages and serve over rice. The best part is when you go to make dinner using the "starter" some of the prep is already done.
Of course this means you have to be aware of what is in the freezer as well, which may be hard for people who don't keep track of what's in the fridge. I've tried keeping a list of what's in the freezer, which may work for some people, but I'm not good at lists.
As for leaving the hubby at home and going away....well, in my experience I've recently figured out it's best not to bother too much. I buy a couple things that are staples that I know he can't survive without and let him go to the store when he needs to. Last time I did this, it worked out better than I thought it would. I guess going to store inspired him and when I got home he he even cooked me some new dishes.:)
Trina
I'm headed away next week for a week - so my current plan is to get the fridge a bit emptier first so hubby can see exactly what is there and waste less. My fingers are crossed!
Diane
"I want to create a compendium of rules, across cultures and also time. Some of the rules readers have sent me so far are specifically about navigating the modern food landscape: “It’s not food if it comes to you through the window of a car.” “Don’t eat at any restaurant of which there is more than just one.” “A snack is not the same thing as a treat.” “If a bug won’t eat it, why would you?” and so on."
Check out his post:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/09/michael-pollan-wants-your-food-rules/?hp
I think my personal rules are still evolving - but the one I'm aspiring to is to only eat food that still looks like food...
As far as our efforts go, we did much better over the weekend - although I panicked a bit when I realized Evan left the leftover chicken out over night. It's only enough for one person though - so we'll let him eat it and see how he fares...
Diane
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