News
A recent study undertaken by WasteMINZ revealed the average Southland family throws away more than $563 worth of edible food. The national audit of council rubbish bins was undertaken to try and find out exactly what foods New Zealanders were throwing away and why, said WasteNet Southland Senior
Waste Officer Donna Peterson. “This audit has revealed a staggering amount of edible food is thrown away every week.
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This comes as no surprise. We have known for some time that on average 30% of the rubbish placed into kerbside collections is food waste. “What did come as a surprise was the amount of food that’s being thrown away that is still edible. Whole loaves of bread, unopened yoghurts and uneaten apples are just some of the foods that have been found in audits across the country.
“WasteNet Southland is part of a nationwide project which surveyed 1,365 people and investigated 1,402 rubbish bins, to find out why food is being wasted and what can be done to remedy it. The results found that 27% of households admit to being large food wasters and throw out more than $21 per week of edible food, whilst 38% of households admit to wasting $8 per week. Surprisingly only 10% of households declared they waste nothing at all,” Ms Peterson said.
There are some quick and easy things that can be done to reduce food waste and keep hold of those dollars longer.
• Store your bread in the freezer instead of on the counter to stop it going mouldy or drying out
• Stew up any excess fruit you have that might be going soft or blend it into a smoothie
• Check your fridge before you go shopping to see which food needs used up
• Turn your leftover vegetables into a frittata or make some fried rice
So what helpful tips do you have to save wasting food?
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