Happy New Year! (I can still say that, right? This isn’t Larry David’s blog so I’m going with it.) Since we still have one more day left in January, I’ve decided it’s not too late to share my new year’s resolution supporting the blog’s Eat Well, Heal the Planet annual goals. Drumroll, please…

That’s right, Waste Less Food is back! I am repeating my 2016 resolution because it’s an incredibly important and impactful one, and I personally could do with recommitting to this goal. If you are new to the blog, each year I choose a resolution where our family’s actions in the kitchen impact the environment in a positive way. For 2020 it is all about wasting less food!

First and foremost, go check out the post I wrote in 2016 the first time I made this my new year’s resolution. There is a ton of great information in that article, including more on the negative impact food waste has on the environment.

Today I want to build on that original post, providing tips for attacking food waste effectively.

#1: SHOP SMART

Being smart about the food you buy is definitely Step 1 in wasting less food.

Yes, that is Cate is 2009. She is now 15. Unreal.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Create a grocery list before you hit the store. This will help tremendously, both with food waste and budgeting.
• Buy ugly produce. It tastes the same, I promise. I often will pick up a piece of produce and go to put it back if it’s not perfect, then force myself to put it in the cart. The ugly fruit wants to be loved, too!
• Buy food from companies like Imperfect Foods. Imperfect Foods sources food that won’t be sold in stores, whether because it is surplus or imperfect (i.e. ugly). I’ve been ordering from Imperfect Foods for quite some time now and love the service. Click here to sign up! (Note: this is my referral link, which means we both get $10 with your first order.)

#2: FOOD LABEL DATES ARE NOT GOSPEL

Ignore dates on packaging. Seriously. The only food that the FDA requires a use-by date for is infant formula – no other food has date labeling requirements. The “use by” and “best by” dates printed on food packaging are a guide for enjoying food at peak quality and is not related to food safety. A “sell by” date tells stores how long to display products and, again, is not related to safety.  

When it comes to determining if a food is safe to eat, use logic, not the date on the package. Color, smell and texture will tell you what you need to know. And always make sure you store food properly to maximize safety and freshness. The USDA has a fantastic article that explains the dating systems used, as well as great tips for knowing if food has spoiled or not: click here to read it! 

#3: COOK AT HOME AND USE LEFTOVERS

Cooking at home has huge positive impacts when it comes to food waste and trash. When our family has had busy weeks where we’ve eaten takeout more, our trash bin fills up significantly more quickly, both with from food containers and random bits of food. There are many reasons why cooking at home is a great choice (Michael Pollan lists a few of them in this interview with the Boston Globe), and reducing food waste is one of my favorites! 

Leftovers are also huge when it comes to food waste. I used to be terrible about using up leftovers, but now (sometimes to my family’s chagrin) I am a champ getting those leftovers eaten! Whether it’s for my own lunch or dinner for the whole family, leftovers are super handy. 

#4: COMPOST!

The first time I made food waste a new year’s resolution, I also committed to composting. Composting is great because if you do end up with some food waste, you are putting it to good use! Rather than sending food waste to the landfill where it will create more greenhouse gases, composting food scraps at home skips the whole extra greenhouse gas problem and you end up with beautiful compost for your yard or garden. You can even compost in a small house or apartment using raised, rotating bins, as they don’t attract critters or cause a stink.  

I searched my blog and realized that I never followed up with you all about our family’s composting experience. I did in fact start composting in 2016 and we still do it! I decided to compost using raised, rotating bins. I highly recommend them! If you decide to go the rotating bin route, make sure the bin has two chambers, one for “cooking” and one for adding materials while the other side cooks.

Click here for a great Composting 101 article from Gardener’s Supply Company. Related, I love Gardener’s Supply Company’s dual-chamber rotating compost bin, which you can buy here. 

#5: MEAL PLANNING IS THE BEST!

Meal planning to the rescue once again! I know I’m biased, what with a blog called “This Week for Dinner” and all, but seriously, people, meal planning is huge when it comes to wasting less food. If your grocery list is based on your meal plan, you are automatically ahead of the game. Buying food that you have a plan for is huge in the fight against waste. If you aren’t meal planning already, hop to it! It’s the best!

Are you ready to waste less food? So am I! Happy 2020!

Each year when it’s time to make a New Year’s resolution, I choose one that supports my overarching goal to “Eat Well. Heal the Planet.” So much of what we eat and how we eat it impacts the environment, which means there are lots of little things we can each do to make positive change. This year our family’s resolution is to reduce food waste and to begin composting in our home.

I am super excited about this year’s goal. And I am excited to share today’s blog post with you. I tried my best to be as concise as possible…there’s just so much to share!

I’ve been wanting to compost for years. In Menlo Park, you could put anything compostable into the green bins for trash pick up, which made composting easy to do. But, alas, San Diego (like most places) does not have that option, so if you want to compost you have to do it on your own. Bottom line: I moved to San Diego and I didn’t know how to compost on my own and I didn’t take the time to figure it out. Until now!

“Just Eat It” Director and film subject Grant Baldwin is shocked to find a swimming pool sized dumpster filled with discarded hummus. Credit: Peg Leg Films – Scene from Just Eat It: A Food Waste Story

In recent months I’ve been reading a lot about food waste and the numbers, quite frankly, are staggering. In the U.S., 40% of food raised and grown is wasted each year (one-third globally), and 95% of food waste in the U.S. ends up in landfills. The problem with food going to the landfill is that, unlike normal decomposition, the anaerobic conditions that breaks down food buried in the dump causes a release of methane gas, which contributes to greenhouse gases. So, we’re wasting energy up front producing food that isn’t used, we’re not turning that wasted food back into energy, and the wasted food is increasing CO2 emissions. In addition, the amount of water it takes to produce the food we throw away each year could meet the household water needs for 500 million people. (Information in this paragraph is taken from the documentary Just Eat It, which I will get to in a moment, as well as other sources, including the National Resources Defense Council and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.)

Waste occurs at all stages of the food production and consumption process, so it will take a combination of individual, collective and regulatory efforts to turn the tide. While looking at the problem on the whole may feel overwhelming, food waste is actually something each and every one of us can work on and contribute to every day. We can make a change and we can make it right now!

Credit: Just Eat It Poster – Peg Leg Films; Grant & Jen – Pure Souls Media

My 11-year-old Cate and I watched the new documentary Just Eat It: A Food Waste Story. If you haven’t seen it, WATCH IT! (You can rent the movie on iTunes for just 99 cents, and you can stream it for free in Canada.) The movie follows the experience of Grant and Jen, a couple who committed to eating only discarded food for 6 months. It’s fun to watch how their 6 months go, but the film also provides ample information about food waste, from farming to labeling to consumption and more. Cate told me afterward that she is grateful they made the movie, which I thought was pretty darn cute. Also, the whole time she was watching the documentary she kept exclaiming, “I can’t believe this!” (I told you the levels of food waste are astonishing!)

My compost collector from Full Circle (link below)

Okay, so back to this year’s resolution! Here’s what we’re going to be doing in the Maynard household starting now!

• Get a compost bin and use it! Your compost can be as simple as a pile in the backyard, but I’m choosing to use a tumbler, both to help keep critters at bay and to speed the composting process. My friend Elise Bauer loves this compost tumbler. I bought the dual-batch tumbler, so I can have one batch “cooking” while we’re adding compost to the other batch. As for collecting the food in the kitchen to compost, I am using this compost collector from Full Circle, which is ventilated to help reduce odor and flies. Full Circle sells compostable baggies, but you can also get similar bags at stores like Costco. Elise uses this super cute compost collector from World Market and loves it, if you want something with a little more style.
• Be more thoughtful about using leftovers and food. For whatever reason, whenever it’s time to clean out the fridge, we always have tons of food that has gone bad. I’m going to work hard to be more conscious of using the food we have so it doesn’t end up in the trash or compost bin.
• Be less picky at the grocery store when selecting produce and meat. Just because something isn’t perfectly pretty doesn’t mean it’s not good! Getting into this mindset is key to changing how much food is wasted. If consumers stop demanding perfect food and start demanding less food waste, then food producers will be able to sell food good food even if it is not beautiful.

If you’re new to composting like me, here are some resources to get you started:

• Composting 101 at Planet Natural
• Composting 101 at Martha Stewart
• Composting at eartheasy

When my compost tumbler arrives and we get started composting, I will check back in and let you know how it’s going! Until then, here are some to-dos for you:

• Consider making food waste a priority in your home, too! Whether that means you’re going to start composting or are simply going to be more mindful of what you throw away, it’s all going to help.
• Watch Just Eat It.
• If you are a composting veteran, share your tips with us newbies in the comments!

Oh, and if you’re a fan of John Oliver’s smarts, wit and salty language, his piece on food waste is also worth a watch.

Happy New Year! And Happy Composting!