Simple hacks to waste less, eat well, save money, and do your bit for the planet.
We’ve developed a guide as part of the Food Use Places project to help you reduce food and packing waste.
We’re flipping the way we think about food waste, focusing on what we can do to make a difference. There are seven themes to help you grow your confidence one step at a time. Inside, you will find simple tips, tasty recipes, and inspiring stories from local people, showing that small changes can make a big impact
Get started by downloading the Ultimate Guide to Using Food and find some quick tips below.
for the beginner
- Make a meal plan for the week and write a shopping list.
- Never shop hungry. Hunger can lead to overbuying or impulse buys.
- Resist those multi-buy deals. If you can’t get through it all, the money saved is money lost.
- Get label-savvy. Remember that only ‘use by’ dates matter, while ‘best before’ dates can be ignored.
- Make sure your fridge temperature is set to between 2 and 5 degrees. Your food will stay fresh for longer. Contact us to receive a free fridge thermometer.
- Store food correctly. This A-Z of food storage will help your food last longer.
- Use your freezer to the fullest. Many foods can be frozen right up to their ‘use by’ date to extend their life. Freezers use less energy when they are full.
- Get to know your serving sizes. Avoid cooking more than you can eat with this portion planner.
- Lunch is for leftovers. If you struggle to cook exact portions, use your leftovers. Search for leftover recipes here.
For the Savvy Saver
- Got a smartphone? Then download use the Olio or Too Good To Go food saving apps.
- Use a whiteboard or a wall chart to write down everything that needs using up in the fridge and freezer. Get creative with your meals to see how much you can use up.
- Count and compare. When shopping compare the cost and weight of loose and bagged items – you’d be surprised, but sometimes ‘deals’ are anything but!
- Not sure if it’s still good? Visit stilltasty.com, a brilliant site that lets you search for just about any food item, and tells you how long it lasts in the fridge or freezer.
- Freeze twice. If a product is frozen raw at home, then thawed and cooked, the leftovers can be re-frozen. If you purchase it previously frozen (like some meat and fish) then only freeze it once.
- Avoid freezer burn by minimising temperature fluctuations (e.g. make sure the door is kept closed and freezer is well loaded) and to ensure products are kept in air-tight packaging.
- Milk products such as milk, yoghurt, cream and even shredded cheese can be easily frozen and used up later. Note that high-fat items like frozen cream are best used in soups or sauces.
For the No-Waste Expert
- Try Compleating – eating the whole ingredient and letting no edible parts go to waste.
- Start a “buy one get one free” group with a friend or neighbour. Shop for staples together and split the cost to get the savings on multi-buy items without overbuying.
- Store a cooking apple along with your potatoes.The gasses given off by the apple suppress the growth of sprouts on potatoes. Even if the apple gets wrinkly, you can still use it later in a crumble or smoothie.
- Revive wrinkly root veg by placing in a large bowl of ice cold water for a few hours. Carrots and beetroot will get crunchy enough to grate into salads.
- Use up peels and rinds. Buy unwaxed lemons and freeze the zest for later use. Saved parmesan rinds add lovely flavour to soup.
- Keep a container in the freezer for scraps to make into stock, adding clean veg peels and meat bones. Once it’s full, boil it all up along with herbs and spices for a delicious homemade stock.
- Pre-chop and freeze items like onions, raw meat or anything you have too much of and plan to cook thoroughly later. Just take out the amount you need, keeping the rest for later.
- If you’re a compulsive composter, don’t leave home without a small container for banana peels and used tea bags. Just don’t forget to compost when you get home!
- Take a Leftovers Week challenge – use only what you already have in your kitchen and see how long you can go without buying something new. If you’re the competitive type, get your friends and family involved.
- Share what you know with others. You are an anti-waste warrior and your commitment is an inspiration to others!
Click here for more information on reducing food waste and surplus food.