As I explained in my Simplicious Food Waste Cheat Sheet for Trolls post last week, in my latest book, I Quit Sugar: SIMPLICIOUS, I plug doggie bags, double dunk my teabags and cook up my friends’ fish bones into stock, all of which apparently leaves some a little uncomfortable.
But it’s necessary. And non negotiable. Food waste is the biggest pollution issue on the planet, surpassing industry and car emissions. And the biggest contributors to that wastage are consumers.
Anyone gagging to make a difference to where our planet is at can start by not wasting food. It really is that simple.
These are some of the things I do. Feel free to add to the list in the comments below and I’ll run a follow up post.
1. I don’t buy more until I’ve finished what I already have. I completely run out of yoghurt before I set out to buy another, that way I find myself using up the last of the sour cream or cheese in the interim.
2. I eat the WHOLE food. This means the apple with the core, and even the leaves from beetroot bunches (with oil, pepper and salt). Ditto the leaves from cauliflower and broccoli and daggy vegetables like swede, choko, and celeriac.
3. I don’t peel anything. When my veggies look lackluster, I make a big soup with lentils and bacon thrown in for flavour and protein.
4. I ignore “best before” labels. The use-by date tells you when a food must be eaten for health and safety reasons, whereas the best-before date gives a rough indication of when it’s best to eat. Many countries have actually removed the “best before” date because they cause totally unnecessary food tossing. I ignore them. You should, too.