EASY FIXES TO REDUCE FOOD LOSS IN YOUR REFRIGERATOR
08/29/22 • 16 min
Episode Summary
Imagine you just went shopping at the grocery store or farmer's market. You bought enough food to fill three shopping bags. You place the shopping bags in the grocery cart. You walk toward your car and on the way take one of those bags, the one that has the most perishable things, and throw it into the trash can.
This is not too far from the truth. The only thing that is off is the timing. Because what really occurs is we take that third grocery bag, unpack the contents into our refrigerator, forget about it until it's gone bad, then place it into the trash.
The average person throws away a third of their food. This total is based on the following statistic: 1/3 (1.3 billion tons) of food produced worldwide is lost or wasted.
The way it translates for the individual family of four is about $1,800 worth of food is thrown out. So in one decade, a family throws away $18,000 of food. It's easy for us to measure it in terms of $$ and tons. But we also throw out the water, soil, and energy with all that food.
When we talk about food waste, we have a tendency to think about it as food loss that happens someplace else, like at the farm, grocery store, restaurant, or schools. But as it turns out, 43% of all food waste happens in our kitchens. And specifically in our refrigerator.
I read somewhere that a refrigerator is a place where food goes to die. It is a sad way to put it, but it's not far from the truth.
Today and tomorrow mark the end of World Water Week. A great way to celebrate is in the refrigerator; starting with the implementation of systems designed to tackle food loss (remember those six slices of bread you just threw out are about 66 gallons of water).
In this latest podcast episode, I share some simple tips I implement in my refrigerator to reduce food waste.
Links and resources:
Download FREE the TEN TIPS to EAT LESS WATER SUMMER PARTY PLANNING GUIDE for all the tips, steps, and info on how to celebrate like a kitchen activist with your friends and family.
Find gifts designed to serve well-being at the Eat Less Water Shop.
Get a copy of the EAT LESS WATER book
Celebrate summer with DRY FARM WINE. They curate delicious, low-sugar, organic wine from biodynamic farms around the globe. Learn more in my podcast episode HOW TO BUY YOUR NEXT BOTTLE OF WINE.
Sign up with this link to receive an extra bottle for one
Start Meal Planning to Save the Planet and Money! Click Here to get started.
Click here for the free How to Eat Less Water CONDIMENT STORAGE TABLE. It is a printable list of popular condiments that belong in the pantry and those in the refrigerator that can be hung in your kitchen for easy reference.Get a copy of the EAT LESS WATER book.
Reach me at [email protected]
Episode Summary
Imagine you just went shopping at the grocery store or farmer's market. You bought enough food to fill three shopping bags. You place the shopping bags in the grocery cart. You walk toward your car and on the way take one of those bags, the one that has the most perishable things, and throw it into the trash can.
This is not too far from the truth. The only thing that is off is the timing. Because what really occurs is we take that third grocery bag, unpack the contents into our refrigerator, forget about it until it's gone bad, then place it into the trash.
The average person throws away a third of their food. This total is based on the following statistic: 1/3 (1.3 billion tons) of food produced worldwide is lost or wasted.
The way it translates for the individual family of four is about $1,800 worth of food is thrown out. So in one decade, a family throws away $18,000 of food. It's easy for us to measure it in terms of $$ and tons. But we also throw out the water, soil, and energy with all that food.
When we talk about food waste, we have a tendency to think about it as food loss that happens someplace else, like at the farm, grocery store, restaurant, or schools. But as it turns out, 43% of all food waste happens in our kitchens. And specifically in our refrigerator.
I read somewhere that a refrigerator is a place where food goes to die. It is a sad way to put it, but it's not far from the truth.
Today and tomorrow mark the end of World Water Week. A great way to celebrate is in the refrigerator; starting with the implementation of systems designed to tackle food loss (remember those six slices of bread you just threw out are about 66 gallons of water).
In this latest podcast episode, I share some simple tips I implement in my refrigerator to reduce food waste.
Links and resources:
Download FREE the TEN TIPS to EAT LESS WATER SUMMER PARTY PLANNING GUIDE for all the tips, steps, and info on how to celebrate like a kitchen activist with your friends and family.
Find gifts designed to serve well-being at the Eat Less Water Shop.
Get a copy of the EAT LESS WATER book
Celebrate summer with DRY FARM WINE. They curate delicious, low-sugar, organic wine from biodynamic farms around the globe. Learn more in my podcast episode HOW TO BUY YOUR NEXT BOTTLE OF WINE.
Sign up with this link to receive an extra bottle for one
Start Meal Planning to Save the Planet and Money! Click Here to get started.
Click here for the free How to Eat Less Water CONDIMENT STORAGE TABLE. It is a printable list of popular condiments that belong in the pantry and those in the refrigerator that can be hung in your kitchen for easy reference.Get a copy of the EAT LESS WATER book.
Reach me at [email protected]
Previous Episode
Organic, Conventional, Cage-Free, Free-Range, Pasture-Raised. What does it all mean?
Episode Summary
How many eggs do you think the average American eats? The answer might surprise you. It's 250 eggs per year.
If you calculate 250 eggs per year and multiply by the average water footprint of one egg, which is 23 gallons of water the total is 5,750 gallons of water per year per person. The largest share of water to produce eggs flows to the fields of grain. According to the USDA, chickens are a major feed grain user. Chickens, whether raised for meat or raised for eggs eat, approximately 100 billion pounds of feed every year.
My goal for this episode is for you to have all the information you need to purchase your next carton of eggs that saves water. I will walk you through the difference between organic and conventional eggs and decide whether or not you believe they are worth the extra cents.
I will break down the difference between cage-free and plain old eggs, in other words when no label of cage-free, free-range, or pasture-raised is listed.
And finally, in this episode, I break down the difference between free-range and pasture-raised eggs and why discerning true pasture-raised eggs take a little effort on your part because the USDA does not currently offer any clear guidelines for egg laying hens.
In the episode, I mention Coyote Creek Farms as a great model for true pasture-raised eggs. They offer a guide on what to look for when you search the websites of farms near you.
Links and resources:
Download FREE the TEN TIPS to EAT LESS WATER SUMMER PARTY PLANNING GUIDE for all the tips, steps, and info on how to celebrate like a kitchen activist with your friends and family.
Find gifts designed to serve well-being at the Eat Less Water Shop.
Get a copy of the EAT LESS WATER book
Celebrate summer with DRY FARM WINE. They curate delicious, low-sugar, organic wine from biodynamic farms around the globe. Learn more in my podcast episode HOW TO BUY YOUR NEXT BOTTLE OF WINE.
Sign up with this link to receive an extra bottle for one penny with your first order!
Make sure you hit SUBSCRIBE so you don’t miss out on future episodes released every Monday and (water) Wednesday.
Start Meal Planning to Save the Planet and Money! Click Here to get started.
Click here for the free How to Eat Less Water CONDIMENT STORAGE TABLE. It is a printable list of popular condiments that belong in the pantry and those in the refrigerator that can be hung in your kitchen for easy reference.Get a copy of the EAT LESS WATER book.
Reach me at [email protected]
Next Episode
Your questions answered- How to Eat Less Water Q & A
Episode Summary
This episode is the first in a series of Q & A with myself and my team member extraordinaire, Alana. These questions were chosen from those sent in by listeners. If you have a question you'd like answered in a future episode, email [email protected]. Your questions are answered in the last episode of every month.
Contact for Alana
www.instagram.com/theterritoryshop or email [email protected]
Links and resources:
Download FREE the TEN TIPS to EAT LESS WATER SUMMER PARTY PLANNING GUIDE for all the tips, steps, and info on how to celebrate like a kitchen activist with your friends and family.
Find gifts designed to serve well-being at the Eat Less Water Shop.
Get a copy of the EAT LESS WATER book
Celebrate summer with DRY FARM WINE. They curate delicious, low-sugar, organic wine from biodynamic farms around the globe. Learn more in my podcast episode HOW TO BUY YOUR NEXT BOTTLE OF WINE.
Sign up with this link to receive an extra bottle for one penny with your first order!
Make sure you hit SUBSCRIBE so you don’t miss out on future episodes released every Monday and (water) Wednesday.
Start Meal Planning to Save the Planet and Money! Click Here to get started.
Click here for the free How to Eat Less Water CONDIMENT STORAGE TABLE. It is a printable list of popular condiments that belong in the pantry and those in the refrigerator that can be hung in your kitchen for easy reference.Get a copy of the EAT LESS WATER book.
Reach me at [email protected]
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