The Green Parent

Why pay for good food only to throw it away? It doesn’t make sense, yet it’s something that all of us have done. That’s why 12% of the U.S. waste stream is made up of food scraps. Keep your hard earned dollars out of the trash by using these simple tips to help reduce your family’s food waste.

Plan Ahead: Before you prepare your next shopping list, take a few minutes to think about your family’s schedule for the week ahead and which foods will work best for your menu. You don’t have to go so far as to assign a meal for each day of the week (although if you’re uber-organized, you probably do this already.) But there is no point in buying a lot of great organic ingredients if everyone will be too busy to eat them. Make a list of the ingredients you’ll need for that week (or day or month…depending upon how frequently you shop) and stick to it.

Pass It On: Got an extra jar of creamed corn or box of mashed potatoes that you’re not likely to use? Pass on any non-perishables (or even unspoiled perishables) to your local food bank so that they can feed someone in need. Check out America’s Second Harvest to find a food bank near you.

Tell It To The Birds: What is it about kids and bread crusts that makes the two so incompatible? Save those discarded bread crusts along with any stale crackers or moldy rolls and bring them along to feed the birds on your next outing in the park.

Turn It Into Dirt: Don’t toss those rotten tomatoes or banana peels in the trash. Turn them in to compost instead. Compost is the ultimate recycler…it turns useless yucky stuff into really valuable yucky stuff. It also reduces waste, saves money, and can help protect your plants from diseases and pests. And it’s not as hard as you might think to get started. Check out this post on starting a compost pile.