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Many people do not appreciate how much food they throw away every day from unconsumed leftovers to spoiled produce. If global food waste is a nation, it will be the third main emitter of greenhouse gases in the world, behind the U.S. and China.
Up to 20 per cent of the food bought by Australians is thrown away. On top of that, before they even touch the shelves, about 20-40% of fruit and vegetables are rejected. Adding up to the statistics, there’s a higher food waste amount from supermarkets, restaurants, cafes and other establishments that are disposed of in the landfill.
Methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, is emitted by rotting food, especially those sitting in landfills. Australians produce methane equal to about 6.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide by sending this food waste to landfills.
In addition, the excessive processing, harvesting, transporting, and packaging of wasted food often emit greenhouse gases, to be exact, more than 3.3 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide. By 2050, it has been estimated that up to 14 percent of greenhouse emissions could be avoided by better controlling the use and distribution of food by 2050.
With all the rising statistics of food waste, there is a need to establish ways to prevent food waste from piling up in landfills and producing huge amounts of methane. Here are some tips that might help you reduce your home waste.
Shop Smart: List Down What You Need
The majority of individuals prefer to buy more food than they need. While it may be easier to purchase in bulk, research has shown that this buying approach contributes to more food waste.
Instead of making a bulk shopping trip once a week, make frequent trips to the grocery store every few days to stop purchasing more food than you need. Make a point of using up all the food you bought before purchasing more groceries on the last trip to the store.
In addition, aim to make a list of things you need to purchase and stick to that list. This will help you decrease the purchasing of impulses and therefore reduce food waste.
Composting Food Waste
A beneficial way to reuse food scraps is to recycle discarded food, converting food waste into energy for plants. Although not everyone has room for a composting system outdoors, there is a wide variety of composting systems for countertops that make this activity simple and available to everyone, including those with limited space.
An outdoor composter can function well for anyone with a large garden, whereas a countertop composter is better for city dwellers with houseplants or tiny herb gardens.
Save Leftovers
The leftovers aren’t just for vacation. While many people save extra food from big meals, when it goes bad, it is always forgotten in the freezer and discarded. Storing leftovers in a transparent glass tub, rather than in an opaque container helps ensure that the food is not forgotten.
If you cook a lot and have leftovers daily, allocate a day to use any that has accumulated in the refrigerator. It’s a smart way to stop food being thrown away. What’s more, this saves time and money for you.
Organise Your Fridge and Keep it Clutter-Free
You’ve always heard the saying, “out of sight out of mind.” When it comes to food, this rings particularly true. While it can be a good thing to have a well-stocked fridge, when it comes to food waste, an excessively full fridge can be evil.
Help prevent food spoilage by having your refrigerator organised so that you can see foods clearly and know where they were bought. Using the FIFO process, which stands for “First In, First Out” is a good way to stock your fridge.
For instance, place the newer package behind the old one when you buy a new carton of berries. It helps to guarantee that older food is used, not wasted.
Prevent Food Waste: Learn to Preserve
Although you might think that fermenting and pickling are new trends, food storage methods like these have been used for thousands of years. As far back as 2400 BC, pickling may have been used as a form of preservation process using brine or vinegar.
All methods you can use to make food last longer while eliminating waste are pickling, drying, canning, fermenting, freezing and curing. These strategies cannot only shrink your carbon footprint but also save you money.
What’s more, most preservation strategies are simple and enjoyable. For example, canning an abundance of ripe apples, making them into applesauce, or harvesting fresh carrots from the market will give you a tasty and long-lasting treat that even children will enjoy.
In a Nutshell
Your food waste can be reduced, reused and recycled in countless ways. Not only can this article’s realistic tips help you waste less food, but they can also save you money and time. You will help create meaningful change and protect some of the most precious resources on the planet by thinking more about the food your household wastes daily.
Only small improvements in the way you shop, prepare and eat food will help to reduce the environmental impact. It does not have to be hard. You can cut the food waste drastically with a small amount of effort, save money and time, and help relieve some burden from nature.
Reach Aussie Junk Team Today!
At Aussie Junk, we aim to make Australia’s waste manageable and minimise the effects of climate change and global warming. Our team can help remove all your rubbish at home safely without harming the environment.
We will expertly sort out any rubbish to make you worry less and hassle-free. For all your rubbish removal needs, call us at 0435 569 921, or book online.
