Actually Useful Tips To Help You Curb Food Waste At Home

You know the stats: Each year in the UK we waste 9.5 million tonnes of food. Of that, 70% is stuff that was intended to be eaten; the other 30% is the stuff we consider 'inedible'.

This, in turn, contributes to 8% of the global greenhouse gas emissions caused by humans.

Like most things to do with climate change and the environment, this information is exhausting and anxiety-inducing. But here's some good news for once: recent efforts in the food waste area have produced a big difference. Between 2015 and 2018, the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) estimates that in the UK we wasted half a million tonnes less food. Which, when everything else is going up – carbon emissions, plastic use, fast fashion – is very good indeed!

Other good news is that there are loads of new technology startups dedicated to disrupting the market and combating the issue. From Apeel (which you might have seen on Instagram), which has invented a plant-based extra layer of protection for fruit and veg to help them retain moisture and stay fresher for longer, to AI helping supermarkets learn exactly how much fresh stock they need so they don't end up with a surplus. Ocado now claims that by employing this technology, it wastes just one in 6,000 items.

Given how eating at home is still the only option most of us have at the minute (thanks COVID) what can you do to help, other than meticulous planning to make use of every food item you buy within a specific date range? This, of course, is always the aim but you know...life gets in the way.

Click through to find some useful tips to help you do your part.