With a busy lifestyle and kids running around, you might be wasting food without realising it.
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) estimate an average UK household of four could save £1,000 a year by reducing their food waste at home.
There are plenty of ‘hacks’ to cut your household food waste but we’ve come up with a list of quick and easy ways to save yourself some money on the food that is being bought for the bin.
- Work out what you’re wasting
Are you sure that the food is no longer edible? If you are certain, when you throw something in the bin, make a note of it on your phone or on a bit of paper. This will help you track wasted food. When you meal plan for the following week you could then decide to not buy it or work out what else you could do with it before it’s too late – could it be frozen? A bit of veg that could be added to a pasta meal?
- Buy loose
By buying food loose, you could cut your costs by buying the specific quantity you need rather than a bag full. Sometimes buying bags of potatoes, for example, is cheaper but it is only better value if you eat all of them.
- Batch cooking
Making a big batch of food and freezing it saves time, waste and money. Cooking one big batch will feed you one meal, and the rest can be eaten the next day or frozen for use later.
- Kids in the kitchen
Getting children cooking in the kitchen allows them to play a part in what they’re eating and in many cases cuts waste food left on plates. Whether it be stirring a pan, or adding an ingredient, give it a go and see what happens.
- Serve themselves
If your waste is coming from the kids’ plate scrapings, try serving the food in a dish in the middle of the table and let them serve themselves. This should cut your waste and any food left over in the dish can be put in the fridge to eat the next day as leftovers.
Hopefully you’ve taken something useful away from our top tips, but if you’re still looking for ideas, Food Waste Action Week is just around the corner from Monday 17 March to Sunday 23 March 2025. Keep a look out for all the content on the Love Food Hate website and the Waste Initiatives Team’s social media.
You can follow our Facebook page @LeicestershireRecycling and visit our Lesswaste website for more tips on food waste and plenty more.