1/3rd of all food produced in the world is lost or wasted, that’s about 1.3 billion tons a year. And it’s not just food that wasted, it’s all the land, water and energy that goes into producing it.
Food production is the biggest cause of deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change, it threatens wildlife and fish stock collapse in our oceans – so 1/3rd of this is completely unnecessary. With a growing global population and possible food shortages, it has never been more important to stop wasting food than right now.
You have the most control over whether food is wasted at home. So by making some easy changes to how you shop, cook and eat you will stop throwing away good food and save lots of money in the process.
Date labels – ‘best by’, ‘sell by’ and ‘use by’ dates are only guide dates - apart from infant formula, your eyes and nose are more reliable indicators of whether something is edible than any date label.
You can also shop smarter. Most of us buy more food than we need, and 1/3rd of it gets chucked away to end up in landfill. Try to plan ahead with a list and meal planner, avoid impulse buying, and buy just enough that you need. You can also cut down on portion sizes, cook just enough, use or freeze left-overs, and get more creative with how you use what you’ve got in your cupboards, fridge and freezer.
By cutting down on food waste you’ll help stop deforestation, reduce your carbon footprint and stop climate change. Why wouldn’t you do that?