In a land of big portions, oversized servings and all you can eat buffets we not only see a devastating effect on the health of Americans but we are creating huge amounts of food waste with negative effects on our pockets, on our resources and on the environment.
The USDA defines food loss as “the edible amount of food, post-harvest, that is available for human consumption but is not consumed for any reason”. Feeding America.org estimates that 25 – 40% of food grown, processed and transported in the US will never be consumed.
The US wastes more than $160 billion worth of food each year. This is approximately 130 billion pounds of food. This means all the energy and resources that went into the production and shipping of that food has been wasted. This is unfortunate.
According to the EPA the uneaten food ends up in landfills and is the single largest component of U.S. municipal solid waste. It accounts for a large portion of U.S. methane emissions, with 21 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide. Thirty-percent of this waste comes at the retail and consumer level.
The Consumer
Studies show that we (the consumers) throw away an estimated $80 billion worth of food annually. Only about one-half of consumers realize that food loss is a problem, and that it creates a waste beyond the food itself.
Most of us do not realize that food loss is also a loss of water, fuel, labor and money, but a significant percentage of us feels guilty about wasting food. So why do we continue to do so?
One of the reasons is due to our worry about expired foods and food born illness. Another is our desire to serve the freshest ingredients and most flavorful dishes. And frankly many of us simply lack time to worry about wasted food.
The National Resource Defense Council (NRDC) has estimated that a family of four loses $1500 per year due to food waste. Just a little effort will help to preserve food, save money and protect the depletion of our resources.
So what can we as individuals do to prevent food loss?
FREEZE AND STORE FOOD PROPERLY: Do you know you can freeze milk, celery, eggplant, eggs, flour? By doing so you will have a small stockpile of food for times when you haven’t had a chance to shop. There are safe ways to keep food fresh longer, and best practices for storing foods in your refrigerator. See savethefood.com for ways to store and freeze food (from meats to vegetables).
SHOPPING FOR WHAT YOU NEED: The Environmental Protection Agency encourages use of what’s in your fridge first, before buying more. Planning menus, buying what you will use, as well as being creative with your food are effective strategies for decreasing food waste.
CREATIVE RECIPES: There’s an Italian recipe called "Giambotta". It’s translated by some to mean vegetable stew. But in my family it meant "let’s clean the fridge and use all the remnant food that we can". So we would pull out all the veggies, greens, potatoes, onions, left over sauce, etc -- added some salt, red pepper to taste, olive oil and a few other ingredients and made what amounted to a stew. By doing this we didn’t have to throw out food and we had a delicious meal! This is what’s meant by creative cooking!
You can do something similar with an omelette. Sauté all left-over veggies, onions, garlic bits, herbs-- even if they are just a few pieces, add some seasoning and oil and finally the egg and you will be surprised just how tasty it will be!!!
At THINK B.A.R.E., we encourage responsible food consumption and usage with a focus on creative food use. And we especially like the idea of freezing foods! By being careful with your food usage, you will help your wallet and the planet too!
THINK B.A.R.E. LIVE B.A.R.E. LIVE RESPONSIBLY!
By Carolyn Francesca © February 2017