Maybe you got a little overzealous at the farmers’ market, and now you can’t eat all those berries before they go bad. Or the expiration date on that jumbo block of cheese you bought at the big-box store is rapidly approaching, and you’ve cut off only a few hunks. An estimated 40 percent of food in the U.S.—or roughly 160 billion pounds’ worth—goes uneaten each year, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. Even the most careful cooks and shoppers sometimes end up tossing groceries, but it’s not a lost cause. Here are some simple ways you can help stamp out food waste.
Store Your Fruits and Veggies Separately Some fruits release ethylene, a gas that speeds up ripening, so keep them in one crisper drawer and your vegetables in another—and don’t pack either too full so air can flow through. If you grocery-shop just once a week, eat the more perishable stuff (think strawberries and perfectly ripe tomatoes) first and save heartier produce (like kale and cauliflower) for later. And don’t wash lettuce or other greens until you’re ready to eat them, as soggy leaves can quickly spoil.
Don’t Be Fooled by Sell-By Dates These are different from expiration dates because they tell you when a food is past its peak, not when it will go bad. If you want to know whether something is still safe to eat, check for mold or off smells. Keep your fridge at the right temperature (the FDA advises checking that yours is at the recommended 40°F by buying an inexpensive appliance thermometer) and your nonperishables away from freshness-zapping heat and light (e.g., in a dark, cool cabinet, and not on the counter or near the stove).
Shop Sustainably Buying food from companies that are committed to reducing waste means you’re making a dent in the problem before you even get your groceries home. Pacific Foods, for example, diverts nearly 2,000 tons of waste from landfills each year. One hundred percent of their food scraps are converted into animal feed or compost, while 2,500 tons of okara, a natural byproduct of their non-GMO soy milk production, feeds cows at their organic dairy farms each year. Pacific also works with local farmers to transform their surplus crops into wholesome, ready-to-eat soups that are donated to the Oregon Food Bank.
Plant an Herb Garden So you’re making a recipe that calls for a tablespoon of chopped chives. You could buy a whole bunch from the supermarket, but you’ll most likely end up throwing away the rest by the end of the week. Or you could snip a few from your herb garden, which you can get growing from seed in as little as a week. Many herbs—chives as well as parsley, mint, and oregano—are easy to grow in a relatively sunny spot, including a windowsill or in a pot outdoors. And if you grow more than you can use before they go to seed, freeze them in ice cube trays with a little water or dry them for later use.
Freeze Food Before It Goes Bad When your peaches start to look wrinkly, your bread is getting stale, or that big pot of rice you cooked is two days old going on three, pop them in the freezer. Nearly any fruit that’s bruised or browning can be chopped up and frozen in a single layer on a cookie sheet, then transferred to zip-top freezer bags and used in smoothies later on. You can also freeze bread, tortillas, and cooked grains, as well as single-serve portions of leftovers.
Put Away the Peeler To minimize waste and maximize nutrition, eat the peel of your potatoes, apples, eggplant, pears, carrots, and anything else with an edible skin. You can also use carrot tops in place of fresh herbs and sauté radish tops with garlic and butter. And you can steam, roast, or even pickle the stems of broccoli, cauliflower, and Swiss chard instead of tossing them.
Buy Dry Goods from the Bulk Bins Say you want to make a curry that calls for a special spice mix or a gluten-free pizza crust made with chickpea flour. Instead of shelling out for a big bag or jar of something you may never use again, buy just what you need from the bulk bin section. Bonus: Pantry staples sold in bulk are often more fresh than the packaged stuff on the shelf, because they’re restocked frequently. And if you bring your own bags and containers, you can cut down on packaging too, a win-win that prevents food waste and environmental waste.