Cost of taking action: Saves money
This simple prompt will help you reduce food waste and the associated costs
Some actions are so simple as to be ‘no brainers’ once you think about them, and this is one of those … it’s free, easy, and makes a difference by reducing food waste through a simple prompt.
Simply place two containers marked “Eat Me First” for food that is close to it’s use-by date or that needs to be eaten while still at its freshest – one in your fridge and one in your food cupboard.
Simples!
How does this help?
This simple action helps by prompting you to use up food that is near it’s use by date first, thus reducing the amount of typical food waste that we produce. This is a particular problem in western developed countries where we tend to take food supplies for granted and have not, generally, had cause to worry too much about having fresh food available.
We’ve all done it, haven’t we … found something at the bottom of the vegetable rack or at the back of the fridge that is looking a bit sorry for itself!
By prompting yourself to use this kind of thing sooner, the total amount of food and associated packaging we buy will be reduced. This can substantially reduce your shopping bills, your carbon footprint, and your plastic footprint.
It’s also much more ethical than food going to bins and eventually to landfill.
Why is food waste something we must address?
There’s no excuse for the current massive food waste in developed countries. Across the developed world we waste millions and millions of tonnes of food. This is:
- hugely expensive
- the cause of substantial wasted carbon emissions
- consuming packaging and transport resources unnecessarily
- highly unethical
- contributing to landfill and waste pollution
Believe it or not, at least a third of all food produced globally is never eaten, and the value of this wasted food is worth over $1 trillion a year. According to OLIO, all of the world’s nearly one billion hungry people could be fed on less than a quarter of the food that is wasted in the US, UK and Europe.
It’s got to stop!
Most of this will have to come as a result of improving our own self control as consumers and shoppers.
What to do
It’s easy. Just like in our picture, find a suitable container and mark it clearly “Eat Me First”. Job done!
Take action
There really is no reason not to take this action and contribute to the reduction of our food waste problem (and your shoping bill!)
- reduce the unethical wastage of food
- reduce the carbon footprint of food production and transport
- reduce the plastic used in food packaging
- save money
- reduce the volume of waste your household produces
And, if you haven’t already, please sign up for our fortnightly bulletin “Take Action” using the form below and give us a mention on your social media … thank you for your support.