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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to be shocked that 70% of food waste is from our homes? Do people not eat leftovers?

570 replies

MLMshouldbeillegal · 13/11/2021 10:20

ahdb.org.uk/news/consumer-insight-positive-movements-in-uk-food-waste-reduction-reverse-as-covid-19-restrictions-are-removed

71% of food waste - 4.5 MILLION TONNES - annually is from our homes. Retailer and restaurants get stick in the press for throwing things away but really, they're not the problem, are they? Only 4% of food waste is produced by reailers.

It's us who are being wasteful. Throwing away 4.5 million tonnes of food each year is obscene. Do people not eat leftovers? Freeze what they're not using and keep it another day?

OP posts:
reallyisthisallthereis · 13/11/2021 19:00

I don't throw away much waste. But that's probably why I'm overweight! Don't like to see much go to waste.
On a more serious note, meal planning before shopping is essential for avoiding waste.

Jimjamjong · 13/11/2021 19:05

We waste very little food, the dog will eat bits of cartilage, chicken skin and meat fat and the hens finish off any kids leftover with great delight.

TimeForTeaAndG · 13/11/2021 19:13

@TowerOfGiraffes

So you know that fresh food delivered will only last a couple of days but insist on ordering more than you can consume in that time period and throwing the rest away?

This sort of willful stupidity explains so much about why we have no hope of averting the climate crisis.

Or, when it's clear that people who shop online are doing a weekly shop, the supermarket could deliver food that isn't just about to go out of date. Many people cannot go to a shop themselves for various reasons. Almost all supermarkets state they'll deliver the product with the longest useby date available on the shelf but they do not do this. That's not the customer's fault.

The online shop pickers don't have time to hunt around for stuff at the back. They have strict time limits to work to.

If people want the luxury of checking all the dates then they need to go and do it themselves/have someone do it for them who isn't being timed. Or if they regularly get sent food that's got short dates then change their buying habits.

PickAChew · 13/11/2021 19:14

@Jimjamjong

We waste very little food, the dog will eat bits of cartilage, chicken skin and meat fat and the hens finish off any kids leftover with great delight.
Bet they make great guard hens with their taste for human flesh 😉
DroopyClematis · 13/11/2021 19:14

@CarlaH

I freeze sourdough and other breads all the time. Defrosted they taste just the same.

I am very confused by all these comments that frozen bread tastes horrible.

So am I.

I buy sourdough or original Hovis Wheatgerm bread.
Absolutely perfect when defrosted. Whole meal is fine too, when defrosted.

Claggy white sliced isn't ok in my opinion.

BudrosBudrosGalli · 13/11/2021 19:19

A bit taken aback by some comments about being able to afford to waste food. This isn't merely a question about economics but basic decency and respect, especially if animal products are concerned. We live comfortably but have virtually no food wastage. We do spend a lot on food, as that is something we all enjoy but love making some interesting creations from leftovers and have appreciative pets... Grin

Stravaig · 13/11/2021 19:23

Singles who struggle for greenery - rocket and parsley seem to keep better than delicate salad leaf mixes. But best of all is lambs lettuce - the bags sold in supermarkets are wee plantlets rather than cut leaves, so they're perfectly happy for a couple of weeks in the crisper box.

Rolls keep longer and taste better defrosted if a loaf of bread is too large - but only if you have freezer space. Chiming in with all those who don't. I have a tiny icebox in a correspondingly smaller fridge.

It's currently full of individual portions of meat and fish and a block of mince (all of which are now erratic in supply thanks to those utter bleeping bleepity bleeps south of the border); also some batch-cooked lasagne and bolognese sauce, blanched broccoli, and some brambles for porridge. But ofc shitty rentals with crappy fridges often lack central heating too, and the icebox will stop working as soon as the room temp heads towards zero. Have to keep a close eye on it.

I no longer mind eating the same thing several days in a row, especially if it's something delicious I've cooked myself. I think ignoring convention helps. We fetishise an ideal of food and family which has little to so with lived reality or healthy eating. I start with nutrition and work from there.

Long Covid gives a whole new perspective. Month 21, no UKgov support, living in a country which lacks the power to close its border and implement its preferred policies of zero Covid & universal basic income. For the first 9 months I could barely stand at the stove for the 5 minutes it takes to scramble some eggs. I would chop veg one day, assemble them into a big pot of food the next, then eat it for five days. Wasting hard won food and democratic agency: two privileges I simply don't have.

Waahingwashingwashing · 13/11/2021 20:07

If people want the luxury of checking all the dates then they need to go and do it themselves/have someone do it for them who isn't being timed. Or if they regularly get sent food that's got short dates then change their buying habits.

Nice understanding of what it’s like to live alone and be disabled.

Lillyhatesjaz · 13/11/2021 20:16

My food waste bin is some times full not because I waste edible food but because I grow a lot of my own vegetables and there is more waste than there is from the carefully selected veg you get in shops.

sandy541 · 13/11/2021 20:23

Waste food? Not likely 😁

to be shocked that 70% of food waste is from our homes? Do people not eat leftovers?
jclm · 13/11/2021 20:23

We find it difficult to cut down food waste because of our extremely fussy son who has autism and a learning disability:

  • he eats plain pasta every day - pasta does not taste nice when reheated (especially without sauce) so we do throw away uneaten pasta. I don't want to eat his wasted pasta each day as I need to lose weight
  • reheating fishfingers and rice is a big no no due to risk of food poisoning
  • lots of foods change texture when reheated in a microwave eg frozen lasagne is never as good as when it is cooked fresh. We could heat up a serving in the oven for 20 mins but isnt that defeating the object of saving the planet?
  • as others have said, it's not good to force children to clear their plates
10yearwarranty · 13/11/2021 20:27

@jclm

We find it difficult to cut down food waste because of our extremely fussy son who has autism and a learning disability:
  • he eats plain pasta every day - pasta does not taste nice when reheated (especially without sauce) so we do throw away uneaten pasta. I don't want to eat his wasted pasta each day as I need to lose weight
  • reheating fishfingers and rice is a big no no due to risk of food poisoning
  • lots of foods change texture when reheated in a microwave eg frozen lasagne is never as good as when it is cooked fresh. We could heat up a serving in the oven for 20 mins but isnt that defeating the object of saving the planet?
  • as others have said, it's not good to force children to clear their plates
Why don't you give him less if you're constantly having fish fingers, pasta etc left over?
Europilgrim · 13/11/2021 20:27

We reheat pasta a lot and sometimes it even improves it! You can add a little olive oil to plain pasta to stop it sticking and heat it up on the hob.

BudrosBudrosGalli · 13/11/2021 20:28

@sandy541

Waste food? Not likely 😁
Aaaaw - we have similar food waste disposal units Grin
blessedbethechocolate · 13/11/2021 20:30

I only tend to buy frozen or tinned food as I'm on a tight budget (£45 for me and 3 teenagers). We don't waste much at all and strangely my flat doesn't have food waste collection. The other day I decided to buy some fresh chicken fillets for our weekly online shop to have for dinner the next day. I chucked them in the fridge without checking the date and when I went to cook them the next day they were out of date and smelt bad so that was a waste of money and food.

jclm · 13/11/2021 20:33

@Europilgrim

We reheat pasta a lot and sometimes it even improves it! You can add a little olive oil to plain pasta to stop it sticking and heat it up on the hob.
I'd be happy to eat this myself, it's a great idea. But for a fussy child with autism he could not eat pasta even with a touch of oil on.

We try to cook the right amount of pasta but if we cook too little, we have to cook him another batch, which isn't ideal when we have limited time. It's also a waste of gas.

echt · 13/11/2021 20:35

Since my local council now composts everything edible bar animal poo and teabags, my food waste is near zero. All such food is put in a small bin in a compostible bag. When full, the bag then goes into the green/garden waste bin. To keep up with the inevitable green bin filling up, they're moving to weekly collections next year
.
I keep a second composter on the bench for my worms.

Yayaga · 13/11/2021 20:36

I quite enjoy using up bits and bobs.
Every month or so I get out all my "random cheeses", the ends that are too hard or not really very appetising, and I melt them all down into a pretty hardcore cheese sauce which is SO good.
Stuff like leftover rice I'll combine with other stray things (wilting tomato, remaining third of a tin of sweetcorn, remaining kidney beans) add some chopped onion, salt pepper lemon juice and olive oil and it makes a salad.
I do the water test for eggs.
Sad vegetables I will make into a soup.
Curling cheese slices I will put on top of potatoes and add some cream and bacon/lardons and put in the oven.
I cut the sprouting bits of potatoes and use the rest.

My biggest source of food waste is when I buy fruit or veg only to discover that two days later it is basically rotting, despite having been kept in the fridge :-S

Tippexy · 13/11/2021 20:42

People with ADHD throw away tons of old food as they simply forget they’ve bought it once it goes into the fridge. They can’t help it.

Wingedharpy · 13/11/2021 20:46

@ZZTopGuitarSolo : Do your reusable mesh bags work well in prolonging food life?
Any links to which ones you use?
I'm very mindful that although we probably don't contribute much to the food waste problem, we very much contribute to paper waste in the Wingedharpy household.

Surely, though, everyone's circumstances are very different, and it's just about all of us doing what we can, within our personal limits, and being mindful of what we use?

GeorgiaGirl52 · 13/11/2021 20:48

Having several dogs helps us reduce leftovers to almost nothing. If there is food left on plates, or bread crusts, or 2 spoonfuls of beans in the bottom of the saucepan -- scrape them into the bowl on top of the dry commercial dog food. It's a treat for them and no waste for us.

Ted27 · 13/11/2021 20:51

@Tippexy

would you care to evidence that somewhat sweeping statement

Jijithecat · 13/11/2021 21:01

Avocados are terrible for the environment. It requires up to 320 litres of water to grow a single avocado. Then there's the deforestation, the air transport etc. To read that people are throwing them away uneaten blows my mind.

NovemberWitch · 13/11/2021 21:01

@Tippexy

People with ADHD throw away tons of old food as they simply forget they’ve bought it once it goes into the fridge. They can’t help it.
We find writing the date opened on stuff helps, along with other house members keeping an eye on things. Having a menu plan for the week, so you remember what and why food was purchased. Any dx needs strategies to manage it.