Why We Should Stop Wasting Food

Did you know that Americans waste 40% of the food produced in this country?  I know, shocking, right?  I heard this one the news this morning, and I couldn't believe it, so I did some digging.  What I found was a very well written & informative blog by Dana Gunders for the Natural Resources Defense Council.  What I didn't realize until I read her blog was that the problem is so far reaching.  Not only does this effect your family budget, it effects the environment, and nutrition.  I really encourage you to take five minutes, visit the Natural Resources Defense Council and read her blog.

What can we do in our everyday lives?  Gunders suggest that we can can reduce waste, by storing food correctly, and learning the limits of our food.

How can we do this?

Plan Your Grocery Shopping:

By sitting down once a week and planning the next 7 days meals, this will help you plan your shopping, which help you buy the things that you need, thus reducing your waste and your budget.  It seems overwhelming at first, but after a couple of weeks it will be a piece of cake. I do mine on Thursday nights, when the grocery ads are in the paper, helps me match the sales with our meals.

Bring the Extreme Couponing Down a Couple of Notches:

I'm not saying don't take advantage of a deal, I'm saying maybe you don't need 10 of something that you only use 2 of over a couple of months. 

Know How Long What you Buy will  be Good:

I found this handy reference guide, on the Ziploc website.  I buy alot of meat from the clearance section, most of this goes right into the freezer.  I also found some great tips on making your groceries last here, on Circle of Moms, easy tips too.

Make Better Use of your Leftovers:

Get Creative, leftover bananas?  Make some banana bread.  We don't need the ends of loaves of bread.  I save these up in the freezer and when I have enough, I make breadcrumbs.  Leftover french bread?  Make Croutons.  Have little bit of each of alot of veggies?  Make a veggie pizza. 


Again, I encourage you to take a couple of minutes and educate yourself on why this is important that we take this issue seriously, and help ourselves while serving the greater good.

~Cyn