A survey in to the issue of Food Waste, conducted by the European Commission at the Good Food Show in Birmingham, has revealed that whilst consumers are aware of this spiralling issue and are taking some action to reduce the amount of food they waste in the home, consumers still do not feel equipped with the knowledge to tackle their throw away habits.
The European Commission have teamed up with a number of celebrity chefs, inviting these well known faces to reveal their ‘Top Tips’ on how to reduce food waste.
Catherine Fulvio, Felice Tochinni, Hannah Miles, Mark Lloyd, Russell Brown, Sally Bee and Stacie Stewart have all provided some brilliant advice to aid consumers.
1. Buy What You Need – Avoid offers that lure you to purchase more“My one top tip to avoid throwing food away is to only buy what you need”, reveals Sally BeeCatherine Fulvio adds; “Shopping online is really useful because you only buy what you need, don’t be tempted by special offers, because you end up getting three of something when you only wanted one and invariably the other two get thrown away.”
2. Plan Ahead – Devise a weekly meal schedule and stick to itStacie Stewart notes; “The main thing I do to reduce waste at home is I have a tea menu. I plan what I’m going to eat and then I know what I need to go shopping for.”Russell Brown adds; “Write a list when you are going shopping. We certainly wouldn’t dream in the restaurant of ordering without writing a list of what we needed.”
3. Decipher Labels - Know the difference between use-by and best-before datesThe use-by date label means the food is safe to eat until the indicated day where as the best-before label shows the date until when the product retains its expected quality but is still safe to consume.
4. Shop Little & Often – Avoid buying in bulk, you rarely get round to eating everything before it goes offStacie Stewart suggests you “Shop quite regularly, every three to four days so you’ve always got fresh things in.”
5. Recycle Recipes – Choose dishes where the same ingredients can be used again“I reduce food waste by buying ingredients that I can use for more than one dish on more than one day,” reveals Mark Lloyd.
6. Be Organised
Bring older items in your cupboards and fridge to the front and put new food at the back to avoid stuff going mouldy on your shelves.
7. Have A Food Waste Bin – Monitor the amount you are throwing awayStacie Stewart suggests that everyone should “have a food waste bin. When it tots up at the end of the week it’s a real shock and a real eye opener.”
8.Freeze Excess FoodCatherine Fluvio is a fan, noting; “I freeze my leftovers, I am the queen of the freezer.”
9.Turn it into garden food - Set up a compost bin for fruit and vegetable peelings and treat your plants to rich compost.Hannah Miles explains; “Composting is a really good way, because it can then go back on to your garden and, if you grow vegetables at home, you can use it to make your products better.”
10.Use Your Leftovers – Get creative with excess ingredients “When you cook you have to be creative enough to use anything that you have around. My mother was a magician at making food out of nothing,” explains Felice Tochinni.While Stacie Stewart thinks soup is fantastic for leftovers. “Everything goes into a pan with a bit of stock and then you blend it down.”
And we at VeggieVision TV say of course.... go vegan!
