Binning is Sinning

Refrigerated Foods are Forgotten Most of the Times

Indians waste as much food as the whole of Britain consumes. The ‘big fat’ Indian weddings, restaurants, canteens, social and family functions and households throw away tons and tons of food every day. It has been found that up to 40% of the food produced in India is wasted which includes 21 million tons of wheat wasted. This is the scenario not only in our country but worldwide-50% of the food produced meet with the same fate globally and never reach the needy. Our country’s agricultural ministry states that, Rs. 50,000 crore worth of food produced is wasted annually.

France is the first country in the world to ban supermarkets from throwing away or destroying unsold food, but instead request owners to donate them to food banks or charities. We cannot do anything to curb the food lost during production, but we can do everything possible to reduce food waste by taking the right step at the right time.

• Plan your shopping list. Almost 20% of what people buy in urban India ends up in the dust bin. In a week or two after your disappointing shopping experience, you will realize your actual shopping needs depending on your family’s consumption. This shows the stark difference in what we buy and what we eat. Plan your list according to your needs and stick to the list.
• Save the freezer space: Be it for storing leftovers or freezing ingredients, the freezer helps to minimize food wastage. Prepare, cook perishable products and freeze them for later use.
• Check the shelf life of foods. Consume foods by the use-by and best-before date. Use the green vegetables first, then go for canned and bottled foods going by their expiry date.
• Understand the concept of storing the right foods in the right places. Maintaining foods at the desired temperatures can increase their lifespan. Decide what goes into the fridge and understand which part of the fridge is best suited for which foods. This helps to increase the shelf life of fresh foods.
• Portion control help to maintain a healthy weight and minimize food waste. By taking only the required quantities of food onto your plate, you not only limit the calories you consume but also limit the amount of food that gets wasted. Read more on portion sizes, serving sizes and the guidelines on eating the right portions at every age from the website www.firsteatright.com.
• Be aware of the stored food in your refrigerator. Keep an eye on what’s lurking inside the food. You might have small containers of leftovers remaining inside for days together unnoticed to be rediscovered when they are past their use-by period. Keep your fridge neat, keeping the latest foods back and the new ones in the front to ensure that you eat the older stuff first.
• Donate to foodbanks. Foodbanks are on the rise and if you have hygienic, untouched food that might end up in the bin, donate it to a needy person or a local foodbank.
• Compost food. Rather than throwing away the onion peels and spoilt food, compost them as they become nutrient-rich fertilizers.
• If you host any function at home or outside, plan and take steps to ensure that the left-over food is transported to an orphanage or an old-age home.