Why the Waste?

The following is a guest post by Gary Foreman of The Dollar Stretcher.

Could a few changes reduce your grocery bill by 25%?

Wasting food is particularly hard on a food budget. You’ve already spent the money, and you get zero benefit from it when it hits the trash.

How much do we waste? In 2004, The University of Arizona in Tucson found that an incredible 40 to 50% of all food produced in this country goes to waste. But, the study included food that was produced and not sold to the consumer. It included farmers speculating on crops and other sources of waste.

The second study is from the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture in 1997. It’s a little old, but it’s still interesting. Their data suggests that 27% of all food is wasted.

A British study quoted in the “NY Times” indicated England wastes a third of its food. Sweden joins in with a quarter of its food going to waste. It appears to be a problem in all prosperous and complex societies.

Fortunately, much of the problem can be eliminated. It’s not hard to do and doesn’t cost a bunch of money. To reduce your grocery budget by 25%, just adopt a few simple tools to your lifestyle.

Recognize that food has a shelf life. Most of the items we buy will go bad if not eaten. Some will go bad sooner than others will. Do you have a plan to eat whatever you buy before it goes bad? Many of us don’t like to do a weekly meal plan. That’s okay, but don’t buy more tomatoes than you can use before they get overripe.

Do a quick inventory of the things that will go bad quickly (like raw fruits and veggies) when you get home from the grocery store. Make sure that you store them properly. Check the settings on your vegetable keeper in the fridge. Consider using the “green bags” for storing fruits and veggies. Read up on how best to store produce. For instance, read on The Dollar Stretcher site on just that subject.

Manage your food storage. Know what you have. Keep a list of the unusual items in your pantry. Look for recipes that would consume them. There are many sites on the web that will let you search their recipe database for a specific ingredient(s). One of my favorites is . You’re bound to find a recipe that will be a family adventure. And, if you can’t find a recipe for your family, instead of letting the item go bad, give it to a friend or neighbor. Let them use it.

Rotate your pantry. If you want to be able to grab the can at the front, you’ll need to put new purchases in the back. Some go so far as to mark on the package when they bought an item so they can be sure to take the oldest one first.

Rotate your freezer, too. Most fresh meats will last for months in your freezer. Other items have their own limit for time in the freezer. Know what’s in cold storage and look for recipes that will use the older items. A written inventory on the freezer door is a good idea.

Use your leftovers creatively. For the most part, leftovers are just as nutritious, just as filling and tasty as the first time out. If your family hates leftovers, you’re going to need to become an expert in portion control or you’ll waste a lot of food.

Fortunately the freezer and the microwave can transform leftovers into a real asset. Not only will you reduce your grocery bill, but also you’ll spend less time in the kitchen or at the fast food joint.

Store leftovers so that they’ll be convenient to use. Many families are using leftovers to create their own frozen entrees. They’ll take a paper plate and add a portion of each of the items served that night. Now they have great meals waiting for them in the freezer. Smart families stick an inventory of meals under a fridge magnet on the freezer door. Each item lists what’s in the meal and when it was prepared. Makes it easy to “shop” for just the meal you want.

Others find that leftovers make great lunches. They’ll package leftovers to make it easy to put them in school or work lunchboxes. Many lunchrooms have microwaves, so it’s easy to reheat that special lunch.

Limit visiting restaurants, and when you do eat out, make use of “doggie bags.” Most restaurant portions are too big. Unless you want to see your waistline grow, it’s foolish to eat everything on your plate. Plan on taking it home. There’s nothing high class about wasting food. And, nothing to be ashamed of if you ask for a “to go” box.

Most families can reduce their food bill by 10% or more without doing anything drastic and without depriving themselves. All that’s necessary is creating a few new habits.
______________________________

Gary Foreman is the editor of The Dollar Stretcher.com website and newsletters. For more ways to save learn about a grocery price book.

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

Tagged as: Frugality