Did you know that the total amount of food wasted in the US exceeds that of the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Sweden combined? In fact, according to The Economist’s Food Sustainability Index, Americans collectively throw away more than 100 million tons of food every year -- that’s nearly 613 pounds of wasted food annually per person!
While we often think of food waste in terms of its financial cost, there are other dire consequences as well, including the impact on the environment as well as food insecurity.
Certainly, you can reduce food waste by making more conscious and sustainable budgeting, buying and using decisions, but creative repurposing can help you make an even bigger difference. Read on for a roundup of six ways to use food waste, save money, and help the earth and its inhabitants.
1. Make broth from veggie scraps.
Carrot peels, celery tops, onion scales, and garlic skins often
Other surprising ingredients, which can be used to make stocks and soups even more savory include cheese rinds and corn cobs. Just store them in a Ziploc bag in the freezer then toss into your next concoction.
2. Keep brown sugar from hardening.
Tired of struggling with rock-hard brown sugar? A slice of citrus peel will keep it fresh. (Just be sure to store in the fridge to prevent the peel from rotting.)
But the peel potential doesn't end there. Citrus peels can freshen up your garbage disposal, apple peels remove stains from aluminum cookware and cucumber peels keep pests away.
3. Turn crusts into crumbs.
Despite your best efforts you still can’t get your kid to eat a sandwich with the crust on? All’s not lost. Refrigerate cut-off crusts in an air-tight container and grind them into breadcrumbs for later use. Leftover cracker crumbs are also great for breading.
4. Grow a pineapple from a pineapple.
Why toss a pineapple crown when you can use it to grow another pineapple? Other produce which can be regrown from scraps includes sweet potatoes, green onions, celery, lettuce and bok choy.
5. Deodorize with coffee grinds.
Cooking with garlic and onions is delicious, but the
Coffee grinds can also be used for everything from attracting worms to dyeing fabric.
If you’re using the broccoli heads and throwing the rest away, you’re missing out on the unsung heroes of the veggie world. Just peel away the tough outer layer of the stalk to reveal crisp, tender stems suitable for salads, slaws, stir-fries and more.
The leafy tops of root vegetables like carrots, beets and radishes, meanwhile, can be wilted down and eaten ---- just like swiss chard or kale.
As much as 40 percent of the food grown and manufactured in the U.S. is never eaten. While this statistic is shocking, we can all do our part to reverse the trend. And trimming your debt is just one of the many reasons to commit to reducing your food waste. These six tips are not only budget boosters, but can also help you have a more positive impact on the world around you. We’d call that a win-win -- for your bottom line and for the planet’s.