Get smart in the kitchen
And help reduce your food waste
A recent study published by WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) Scotland has revealed some staggering facts about the amount of food we waste.
In Edinburgh, we waste 2,000 tonnes of food a year. This costs each household about £430 a year or £550 for a family with children.
This amount of food wasted in the city is equal to more than 83,000 large supermarket trolleys’ worth which, lined up end to end, would go from Edinburgh to Glasgow Airport.
As well as saving money, reducing the amount of food we waste helps the environment. People think food going to landfill isn’t harmful but it creates greenhouse gas emissions.
If we stopped putting this food to landfill it would be equal to taking one in every four cars off Scottish roads. We waste more food at Christmas than any time of the year, so now is the time to start making a difference.
Top tips to help you reduce food waste
- Write a shopping list. Planning your meals and food shopping can save you money as well as food waste as you only buy what you really need.
- Before you go food shopping, have a look to see what you have in your cupboards, fridge and freezer. This will help you remember what you already have in there.
- Buy the amount of food you need, rather than being tempted to bulk buy perishable items that you might not use in time.
- Try rotating the food in your fridge, so that any food at the back that needs used up is brought to the front.
- Use leftovers to make a range of tempting suppers.
Visit www.wasteawarelovefood.org.uk for recipe ideas.
GOOD TO KNOW: Kitchen Canny is a new project that aims to help householders find practical ways to reduce their food waste.
The project is working with 4,000 people in communities across the Lothians and Borders over the next 18 months to find out what works when it comes to cutting down the amount of edible food thrown away.
Find out more at www.changeworks.org.uk/kitchencanny