Tips on reducing food waste during the holidays

By -

 Tips on Reducing Food Waste During the Holidays by Aadyaa Keyal

The holiday season is soon approaching. It means lovely weather, holidays from school, delicious food and gifts all week long. It also includes several parties with yummy food and beverages being served. If you're hosting or being invited there might be tons of food left over. If not consumed soon or stored appropriately there can be a huge amount of food waste. To avoid this, here are several tips to reduce food waste during the holidays.



  1. Plan ahead & shop 

If you are hosting, get a headcount to see how many people will be there so you can adjust your plans accordingly. Make a menu and browse your pantry to see what you need to buy. Stick to the shopping list and get the right quantity. This will save your money and confusion when shopping. 


  1. Involves guests too.

Ask your guests what they are willing to eat depending on your party time. Based on the majority ,choose foods that are  popular amongst your guests that you will know will get eaten. If you are having a potluck-style party, try creating a sign-up sheet so that you and your guests can coordinate. Having too much of one type of food or too much food overall can contribute to food waste, so keeping track of who is bringing what can help prevent that. 


  1. Serve strategically 

Let guests serve themselves

If possible, allow guests to serve themselves. With this serving method, you will likely end up with less plate waste (food that is left uneaten on the plate) because people most likely won’t take what they don’t want.  


  1. Arrange for leftovers 

Leftovers are inevitable this time of year. To make sure that leftovers get used, you can encourage guests to bring their own reusable containers to bring food home. Setting the expectation that there will be leftovers and that you want people to take them can help you avoid awkward exchanges at the end of the night. Having extra containers on hand that you can lend to people is also a great way to make sure none of the feast goes to waste and everyone gets their share. 


  1. Store leftovers properly 

Once you bring your delicious leftovers home, it is time to store them properly so that they can last. Sometimes, there are so many leftovers that you can’t possibly eat them all before they go bad. This is where proper storage methods can make a big difference. One awesome way to preserve food is by sticking it in the freezer. It can prevent food from going stale soon.


  1. Use your leftovers creatively 

Once you have successfully stored all your tasty leftovers, the question of what to do with them becomes very important. You may not want to eat the exact same feast for multiple meals in a row, so get creative! Goggling different ways to use ingredients or dishes will also introduce new recipes that you could use in the future. 


  1. Share and donate excess food. 

You can  donate to your local food bank. Most food banks accept unopened, unexpired and unprepared food, so if you have any food that fits these parameters, donating to a food bank is a great way to make sure that your food reaches people who need it the most. An orphanage,old age home or even elderly care homes are great places to share food in the holiday season. 


  1. Compost

Despite using as many leftovers and food scraps as you can, there may still be things that you can’t eat. You can dispose of these scraps in a green way by composting. 


Lastly, leftover holiday food and food waste is a real issue. The Ecology Center found that in the United States, we see a 25% increase in waste between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve. That's 1 million extra tons of waste, and 21% of that is food. 

 The holiday season is a time of happiness and joy. Food is a symbol of  gathering distant relatives,family and friends together. If planned systemically no food will be wasted during everyone’s favourite time of the year. Let's be responsible citizens and contribute less waste this year! 



https://pirg.org/edfund/resources/how-to-reduce-food-waste-and-save-money-this-christmas/

https://www.kvaroyarctic.com/how-to-prevent-food-waste-during-the-holidays#:~:text=Leftover%20holiday%20food%20and%20food,waste%20such%20an%20ecological%20problem%3F

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What is Trending this Season? - Seasonal Eating: Benefits and Recipes

By -
What is Trending this Season?- Seasonal Eating: Benefits and  Recipes Written By - Rijak Kaur Sarla What if I told you that I had a secret tip to keep a little extra cash in your pocket as well as  benefit healthily from it? Well, eating seasonally and locally covers that all! Seasonal eating is  not just good for one’s health but also helps support local farmers and the environment. Also, one  cannot ignore that when fruits and vegetables are in season, they are more abundant and often  less expensive- a brilliant strategy to save money! What is Seasonal Eating? Seasonal eating is a lifestyle that encourages relishing on fruits and vegetables when they are  naturally at their best! Poetically, it is a way of reconnecting with the natural rhythms of the  Earth. Nowadays, we have access to anything and everything just anytime- be it oranges  available all year round or corn on the cob in the middle of February! In contrast, seasonal eating  is...
Read more

THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF FOOD WASTE

By -
Image
THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF FOOD WASTE : How food waste affects the environment   Haven't we all taken a big helping on our plate or ordered extra food intending to finish it all. Yet, when we haven't been able to finish it ,we unfortunately have to let it go to waste. Imagine this happens on an extremely large scale. Did you know that about one-third of all food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted each year, which is roughly 1.3 billion tons? When we ponder upon food waste, what is actually food waste? Food waste is food that is intended for human consumption that is wasted and lost, and refers not only to food that consumers don’t finish at restaurants and are thrown out at home, but also raw materials and produce that are lost in the farming stage, harvesting processes, during transportation, and storage. The food wasted by us might seem like an honest mistake that's made once in a blue moon but this mistake is now a blunder that's contributing to clim...
Read more