NOW CLOSED Share your views on food waste for CarrieMumsnet and Unilever UK and you could win £100 cash

[KatieBMumsnet]

CarrieMumsnet is talking about the issue of food waste at an event hosted by Unilever UK soon and she'd love to get your views on the topic.

Here's what Unilever UK says about food waste:
"At Unilever, thinking sustainably is at the heart of everything we do. Now we're working hard with WRAP (Waste and Resource Action Programme) and other organisations across the UK to help people to reduce the amount of food they dispose of. After all, throwing away food wastes money and it's bad for the environment too.
"According to recent research we've commissioned with the Fabian Society, the most trusted source of information about reducing food waste is our friends and family. People listed food going off too quickly, throwing away leftovers and cooking too much food in the first place as the key reasons why they waste food. We'd love to get your thoughts."

On 1st November, our Mumsnet co-founder, Carrie Longton, is going to be joining a number of influencers and experts in the world of sustainability to speak at a morning of debate and insight on the subject of food waste, hosted by Unilever UK.
Here are some questions to get you started - all views welcome:

• Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
  
• Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
  
• What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
  
• Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
  
• If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
  
• How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
  
• Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
  
• Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?
  
• Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
  
  Everyone who adds their comments to this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one winner will receive £100 cash.
  
  Thanks and good luck,
  
  MNHQ

[DameMargotFountain]

oooh mine and DHs current hot topic!


we've recently been allocated a special food-waste recycling bin by the borough council - a bin within a bin which you also have to use corn-starch liners in.

i will not use it.

ever.


in the most recent community newspaper, the collection of food waste is being hailed as a success due to the weight of food collected, yet there has been no encouragement/initiative for how to avoid food waste at all.

our town now has a food bank ffs, people are relying on donated food yet the council is celebrating how much food we're discarding.

yes, i know people think it's surplus to their own requirements, it's their choice etc etc, but i'd far rather we talked about how to reduce waste and reuse our leftovers.

[MainlyMaynie]

I have found our food waste has reduced hugely since we moved abroad. We used to get a big Tesco delivery once a week and ended up throwing loads away. Here we visit the shop nearly every day and throw away very little. Local shopping more regularly seems to be a great way to reduce food waste. The stuff we used to throw away was mostly vegetables and other fridge stuff, which we bought without meal planning.

[lucyellenmum]

No compost bin here, but on list for allotment, so we will have one then!

No food waste collection - frustrating, but our local council (im in kent) are, i believe, very poor when it comes to facilitating recycling at all levels,.

Was in tesco this weekend - one of the guys was walking around at closing time (sunday) trying to sell sandwhiches at 15p each, thanks very much. I asked what would happen to the trolley full of sandwhiches that would clearly not sell - thrown away. The member of staff said this happens regularly when they over order on things, I asked why they couldn't be distributed to the homeless. I think this highlights how supermarkets are not playing a part in reducing waste.

[lucyellenmum]

Dame margot, that is an excellent point, well made!

[ShatnersBassoon]

We put all uncooked food waste eg potato peel, apple cores etc in the compost in the garden. All cooked food waste has to go in the regular household waste bin with packaging etc. The council doesn't have any compost collection.

We don't throw much food away, only things like leftovers that have been prodded around on a plate ie if it didn't leave the pan/cooking dish, it's good to keep. We manage to avoid lots of waste because DH is one of those people that will eat anything put in front of him, so he doesn't mind if he has a small bit of leftover lasagne with some baked beans to bulk it out. Also one of the children has a minuscule appetite, so even the smallest amount of leftover food will be kept.

The only regular food waste we have is when DH has been shopping unsupervised and buys an exotic fruit or veg. It invariably gets put in the fridge drawer, ignored, then into the composter. We like to think it adds something special to our compost

[mumnosbest]

Wasted food is my pet hate!

Every other weekend we go to DSis for Sunday roast. She has learnt that she gets a telling off if she throws all the extra veg and chicken carcass (still covered in meat as she only likes the breast meat) away. Instead she sticks it all in a big dish (bones and all) and it goes straight into my slow cooker for a casserole, sorting Monday's dinner for 5 at mine!

I also hate to see the reduced food at the supermarket as I know so much will end up in the bin. So much of it can be used or frozen.

Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
We waste very little food. I should get a composter but hate worms
Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
No
What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
Kids leaving dinners. Forgetting I have something at the back of the fridge.

Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
cooked
If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
Extra food is frozen or kept for lunch the next day. Any fruit or veg goes to the guineapig, meat scraps to the cat, left over pasta (including spaghetti hoops), potatoe etc goes out for the birds.
How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
Slow cooker - soups and caseroles and having pets that eat anything.
Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
I take DH shopping and we plan meals for the week so we only buy what we need.
Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?
As above^ DH is very stingy careful with money so if I take him shopping I don't overspend.
Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
No but if you empty them out aroud your roses, they love them. Egg shells are good to keep slugs and snails off your plants too.

[HeathRobinson]

I think being able to buy smaller portions of food would be good, without paying a premium for it. Sometimes you just want one of a thing. Or for single people or people who have a reduced appetite don't want to buy so much.

[lionheart]

Local shopping helps, I think. We don't throw away as much as we used to because we just buy less in one go.

• Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go?
  
  Waste goes in the general bin (well-wrapped).
  
  Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin? No and no. There was a kitchen caddy at the holiday cottage where we stayed this summer and I wasn't too keen on it but they did have a collection service so we stuck to it.
  
• Does your local council offer a food waste collection service? No
  
• What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away? leftovers or out of date.
  
• Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food? Mainly cooked.
  
• If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum? By not going bananas in the supermarket.
  
• How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin? If I had culinary skills I would know how to make a second meal out of the first. Making the first meal is pushing my limits already tbh.
  
• Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food? I try to give some stuff away, if, for example I've been tempted by a bogoff deal or something.
  
• Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food? I find that supermarket deliveries often mean a short sell by date and this adds to waste so I am careful about not buying too much fresh produce online.
  
• Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home. Yes

[CMOTDibbler]

We try hard to reduce food waste by checking what we have, making soup from any dodgy veg, freezing half the loaf of bread as we don't get through it fast etc.

What is generated is either composted directly, or bokashi composted (this allows you to compost cooked food, meat, dairy).

Our local council does food waste collection weekly, and you can buy the resulting compost at a very reasonable rate. They promote food waste reduction heavily too.

[AWomanCalledHorse]

Margot, excellent point.

Scrapping best before dates on food would save a lot of wastage...people should be able to tell if something fresh is edible or not by the way it looks/smells/feels.

A few months ago, for an entire month, I listed every scrap of food we threw away, it helped me to shop & store food smarter (most of the waste was yogurts or mouldy bread).
So we buy very little fresh veg (most of it tastes alright frozen) unless it's for a specific meal (cauliflower cheese for example) or the pet rabbits.

We also save on wastage by not buying products from brands like Unilever who test on animals

[hugandroll]

I must admit I do waste food. I try not to, but I do. I have an anxiety disorder around the health of my family so stick stringently to use by dates and this is where the majority of my waste comes from. This should reduce when ds2 is fully weaned as its mainly where a family of 3 has to buy food for a family of 4 if you use supermarkets (which we have to as cannot afford the butcher and local shops).

It goes in a food caddy which is provided by our council which is good but I do wish I wasn't so wasteful. The food is mainly uncooked as its, for example, the fourth breast of chicken that we dont yet need in a meal that is left in the fridge to use another time but then it goes off because we dont have a meal that needs one chicken breast.

I also put teabags in the caddy as the information leaflet our council provided informed us we could. I would prefer information on how to reduce waste, I will also try a butcher for my meat and buy what I need to see if it does end up cheaper (doubt it though).

I will add my wastage has dramatically reduced since I started shopping at tesco rather than asda as their use by dates are much longer.

[LadyMaryCreepyCrawley]

Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
I usually put it into the black bin which goes to landfill. In my defence, I don't thow a great deal out. It's usually 1/3 full when they empty it every 2 weeks.

• Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
  Not really. All food waste, plastic bottles, plastic tubs and cardboard go into one bin.
  
  
• What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
  because it's off/uneaten.
  
  
• Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
  Both.
  
  
• If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
  I freeze a lot, and don't buy more food then we need if I buy a chicken, it is used for more than one meal.
  
  
• How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
  Good planning. A chicken can last for 3 days, so it's possible to make 3 meals out of it. I ignore the sell by dates on veg, if they look OK then I'll cook them.
  
  
• Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food? Above
  
  
• Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food? Above.
  
  
• Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
  Yes, even though I don't drink tea!

[EauRouge]

Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? We throw away very little food and what does go off goes into out home compost bin.

Does your local council offer a food waste collection service? Not a dedicated food one but they do sell cheap compost bins and I think we can put kitchen scraps in our garden waste bin.

What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away? Not sticking to the meal plan.

Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food? We don't often throw out food but when we do it's almost always salad.

If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum? Meal planning and sticking to the shopping list, and going through the fridge every day. If something is about to go off then I cook it and freeze it to use another day.

How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin? Don't know since it's usually lettuce.

Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food? Smaller portions available at supermarkets. I don't always want to BOGOF if I'm going to end up throwing something out, I'd rather have 1 of something for half the price.

Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food? Plan, plan, plan and don't deviate from your shopping list.

Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home? Yes, I drink gallons of tea. Coffee grounds can also go in the compost bin or straight on the beds to discourage slugs.

[HeathRobinson]

I do throw away some food. Food waste can go in either our green waste bin or the normal bin. The council doesn't offer a food waste collection service. But I did get a Green Cone from the council a few years ago. That's good for all food waste.

Main reasons for throwing food away - cooked a bit too much food or something left too long in the fridge. More of the former, I think. One dc just left home, still adjusting quantities!

I do compost tea bags in our composter, as well as the normal stuff.

I'd like to have a pig to eat all the left over veg!

[missymoomoomee]

• Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
  
  I used to throw away quite a large amount of food, I have recently invested in a compost bin as I am going to start growing vegetables.
  
  
• Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
  
  No, they used to but stopped because no-one did it.
  
  
• What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
  
  Before I bought my compost bin I threw away food because I either made too much food, or my youngest would drop a lot of food onto the floor.
  
  
• Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
  
  Cooked, mainly but also a fair bit of veg bought at the start of the week that didn't last until the end of the week.
  
  
• If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
  
  I have now started cooking enough for 2 meals and freezing half rather than cook a bit more than I need and throw the excess away.
  
  
• How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
  
  I could have frozen food. I also could have planned meals better rather than buying shopping at the start of the week and cooking whats most convenient rather than planning according to use by dates.
  
  
• Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
  
  As above, meal plans, if you get a weekly shop, freezing meals, using leftovers in other meals, I am also trying to grow my own vegetables and I'm hoping that will reduce waste as well.
  
  
• Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?
  
  I deliberatly overcook now. I cook twice as much as I need and freeze half of it.
  
  
• Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
  
  I didn't, but I do now.

[worldgonecrazy]

Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go?
We don't throw a lot of food away, but it goes straight into the normal waste bin.
Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
No, because we don't garden so wouldn't use it.
Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
No, Birmingham Council is really bad at organising recycling.
What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
Cooked food that hasn't been eaten, or hubby has bought all the bread reduced to 5p and not remembered to freeze it.
Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
Mostly cooked food.
If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
We stick to a meal planner.
How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
If we were gardeners I would compost it.
Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
Buy good quality food and have a meal planner for the week. Our food may go straight in the bin, but as we only leave a binbag out for the binmen every 2-3 weeks I think we're doing something right.
Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?
Buy good quality food and have a meal planner for the week
Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
Yes.

[Indith]

• Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
  
  We don't throw much away, there certainly doens't tend to be food left over from meals so it is just stuff the baby has dropped and veg peelings etc. We do have a compost bin, it tends to get filled by grass cuttings and the like though. We vary between chucking the food waste and composting it.
  
  
• Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
  
  No. My mum and dad's does and I think it is fantastic.
  
  
• What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
  
  Mainly veg peelings and stuff the baby has dropped and not eaten after smearing it everywhere. Occasionally a green pepper that has festered at the back of the fridge.
  
  
• Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
  
  See above
  
• If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
  
  Eat what we have before buying more so either menu plan and shop accordingly or buy what meat and veg is on offer and plan meals around it.
  
  
• How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
  
  Composting probably. But I don't really have much of a garden for it which is why a food collection service would be great.
  
  
• Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
  
  Plan what you are going to eat (see above) and when you do cook cook sensible amounts, you don't need to cook extra just in case someone wants seconds as they can have pudding or if there is some leftovers then if there is enough for someone to have for lunch tomorrow save it and have some pudding instead of taking seconds just because it is there and then leaving a piddly little bit that will get thrown away because it isn't enough to keep.
  
• Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?
  
  plan plan plan. buy and freeze. if you have fruit that won't ripen or is about to go off then stew it for puddings.
  
  
• Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
  
  yes.

[nottersgotterdog]

• Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
  
  We dont throw very much food away at all. Food waste goes in the dog/the bin!
  
  
• Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
  No, unfortunately
  
  
• What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
  
  If I've got something out of the freezer, and DH has forgotten to give it to the children, or we are out unexpectedly.
  
  
• Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
  
  Probably about 50:50, but it is minimal
  
  
• If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
  
  Do a lot of batch cooking, so portion control is already taken care of. Overcook Sunday lunch for an easy Monday tea.
  
  
  
• How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
  
  I think its circumstantial, rather than bad planning. I always use food if I can.
  
  
• Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
  
  Batch cooking as I said, using any bits and pieces left in the fridge - my bolognaise can have anything from celery to peppers to mushrooms, depending on what there is left.
  
  I also make soup once a week with any outstanding veg before I do my weekly shop.
  
  I regularly defrost and review the contents of my freezers and plan meals around them.
  
  
  
• Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?
  
  Meal plan, buy what you need, micro-manage your fridge and freezer
  
  
  
• Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
  
  Yes

[LittleAbruzzenBear]

We don't really throw much away. Our council takes away waste food in our gardening wheelie bin, which helps. I think the fact that I cook fresh food and get food portions right for everybody helps. I boil chickens whole so that I can get all the meat off and use the stock for risotto or sauce. I put used coffee grounds around tomato plants. Everything EauRouge has said.

I think my generation, most of us, are quite savvy with not wasting food. My Mum's generation (Mum is early 60's) do not seem as good with waste management and cook far too much for dinners and entertaining that then ends up in the bin. I was rubbish with managing food waste in my twenties, but now I hate food waste and make sure I don't!

[Flippityjig]

• Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
  We throw away very little food, I try to use up everything, either by eating left overs cold or fried up the next day and also by not buying too much. Any food waste goes in the bin. I have a kitchen caddy and compost bin but don't use it at present.
  
  
• Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
  No.
  
  
• What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
  Because the food has gone off (but this happens rarely - I either freeze it or use it up before it goes off).
  
  
• Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
  Mainly uncooked food.
  
  
• If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
  By only buying what I need and using it up in some way. e.g. frying up leftover veg.
  
  
• How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
  Plan better - but I rarely throw food away.
  
  
• Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
  Only buy what you need. Meal planning.
  
  
• Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?
  Heat up left overs.
  
  
• Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
  Yes.

[iwantavuvezela]

This subject is one I feel passionate about! Perhaps it is coming (originally from Africa) where there are many people living on the streets, or even working in homes etc who are not able to feed themselves properly, go hungry. This has left me with a deep inbred feeling of not wasting food. I used to keep all food that might not be able to be used to give out to children/people on the streets. So in asnwer to your questions:

Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?

All food leftovers (banana peels, vegetable peelings, scrapings from plates) go into the food caddy. This is mostly food that does need to go into the recycling food bin.

Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?

Yes. This is done weekly, and we are also given those bio-degradable bags to use in the food bins. I keep mine in the kitchen, and when full, empty into the garden/food waste general bin outside.

What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?

These are sometimes child related. Serving up for my duaghter, and or her friends, i might need to throw away what they dont eat. I do try and get portions right for children, but could be accused at times of serving too much, and therefore having to ditch some of the food. We have a small fridge, and sometimes food gets "lost", and I find a wilted cucumber / potatoes growing alien like objects out of their heads, and these need to be ditched. Sometimes life gets in teh way, we have some food that could be eaten, and then might not be at home for two days dinner in a row and it is no longer edible.

Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?

I would say it is a mixtgure. Asd mentioned it might be cooked bits that are uneaten on plates / and food that sometimes goes off. Sometimes fruit bought at the market doesnt last long, and on a particularly hot week I might find that strawberries or grapes have gone off and need to be thrown away.

If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?

We eat it! I try to cook food in order of what is in the fridge. MAke a note what there is, and then cook around that so that it is used up. Every third or fourth night i merely recycle everything in the fridge that needs eating and am not too worried about hte combinations, but dont cook more food until it is eaten. I try to be aware of "sell by/use by dates" of food in the fridge so be aware of what needs to be eaten. Buy more frequently fresh veg and fruit so that it doesnt go off by having too much. Smaller more frequent online shops help me with this.

How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?

As mentioned in the answer above, i just serve it all at once - all the bits and pieces and we eat that for a meal to make use of what there is. So there might be a small portion of pasta / a small or half portion of bolognaise / some potatoes etc etc, these are all used. I often make something like a big bolonaise and throw all bits of food that need to be eaten into it - any veg on its last legs, and bits of anything esle!

Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
Just to be conscious of what I already have (fresh and de frosted) and to buy consciously what is needed.

Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?

I think once again my answer remains the same

Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?

Yes, and we do this regularly

[MissRee]

Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?

I try not to throw too much food away. Food waste goes into the normal kitchen rubbish. I don't have a caddy or a compost bin as I live in a flat without a garden.

Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?

Local council are pretty shocking when it comes to recycling - they collect paper, plastic and tin and thats it. We're still on a bin-bag system, not even wheely-bins! No food waste collection at all and I don't think there are any plans for it.

What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?

Unexpected nights out and forgetting use-by dates!

Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?

Uncooked mostly.

*If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?

I manage to keep waste to a minimum by freezing any leftovers where possible and trying to remember to chuck stuff in the freezer if I think we're going to miss the use-by date.

How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?

I need to start making more soups and casseroles to use up veg that may be past its best.

Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?

Not really - other than freezing leftovers and stuff that might go out of date soon.

Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?

Shop more often instead of doing a big shop every so often!

Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?

We don't have food waste collection.

[Pascha]

Do you throw away much food at home? Where does the food waste go? Do you have a kitchen caddy and compost bin?
Not so much really. Gone off veg goes in the compost bin, cooked food waste and uncompostable stuff goes down the macerator.

Does your local council offer a food waste collection service?
Hahahahaha No. My local council doesn't offer any doorstep recycling whatsoever to our area. The towns get a basic recycling box but nobody is interested in helping the villages recycle without traipsing to the tip.

What are the main reasons or circumstances that you throw food away?
Its gone off before I've had the chance to cook it.

Of food you throw away, is it mainly cooked or uncooked food?
Scrapings from the plate I suppose, or gone off veg. Very little else.

If you don't throw away much food, how do you manage to keep waste to a minimum?
By buying only for specific meals and snacks for a week.

How do you or how do you think you could make the most of the food that would otherwise be put in the bin?
Eat it sooner? Not sure what else there is to do. All the food in my bin is uneatable at the point I throw it away.

Have you got any great ideas for wasting less food?
Buy less food.

Have you got any top money-saving tips that also help you to throw away less food?
Buy less food.

Did you know that tea bags can be put into your local council food waste collection (if you have one) or composted at home?
Again, hahahahaha at a council provided food waste collection scheme. They go down the macerator*

[letticepetticoat]

I find meal planning has stopped any food wastage in our house.I plan two meals per week around potatoes, two rice and two pasta, and we have roast dinner on Sundays.Meat is bought once every two weeks in bulk from Asda home delivery,then frozen and defrosted overnight for a particular planned meal.I buy many more frozen veg than I used to.I hate the fact that supermarkets will only keep 'perfect' fruit and veg.I was in a local greengrocer the other day and they had Egremont Russet apples-far tastier than Golden Delicious or other supermarket favourites,and they looked like apples should-not perfect! I think I partly abhor food waste because my parents grew up during the war and my Dad in particular came from a large family where there was not enough to eat. He and his brothers had to work on a small holding from an early age to supplement their rations, and so still value food as a precious commodity not to be wasted.I don't know how home economics is taught in schools these days,but I think we are doing our children a disservice if we don't educate them in this area-If I waste food I may as well put money straight in the bin!The amount of food wasted by the big supermarkets is truly disgusting.