MADISON, Wis. — Food waste prevention week begins Monday, and there lots of ways to cut back on tossing old food into the garbage.
According to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), wasted food makes up the largest portion of trash in Wisconsin.
Raccoons and other animals digging through the trash may be thankful for this, but when food breaks down in landfills, it produces methane — a greenhouse gas that warms the Earth more than carbon emissions over the same amount of time.
When the weight of food scraps is added to food waste — any food that is thrown away before it is eaten or because it spoiled — the total amount sent to the landfill in 2020 was about 294 pounds per Wisconsinite, or about 854,000 pounds in total, according to the DNR.
How can the average person help lower food waste?
Food labels and expiration dates can be misleading. The labels are not regulated by federal law to show when the food is unsafe to eat, but rather whether the food is at peak quality. Baby formula is the exception. The best way to decide if food is good or not is to look at it or give it a sniff to see if it has spoiled.
Shopping with purpose is another way to keep your refrigerator and pantry stocked with good food. It is easy to buy more food than is needed, especially when visiting the grocery store before eating a meal, but keeping an eye on what already was purchased and how much is needed for future meals can help lower the amount of food thrown away because it didn't make-the-cut for dinner.
Storage is just as important as not over-buying food. Figuring out how best to store different food can extend its life. Tossing it in the freezer before it spoils can provide more time to decide how to use it as a snack or meal.
Scraps can be useful and help with saving money. Vegetable leftovers and bones can be used to make soup stock — all of which can be frozen. Stock will also be one less thing on the grocery list.
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