Roughly one-third of human consumption in the world is wasted. That’s about 1.3 billion tons a year, according to TheWorldCounts.com.
A considerable amount of food is lost during every step of its cycle, from agricultural production, processing, distribution, and consumption. An astounding 35 percent of the food that is perfectly good gets thrown out by supermarkets, stores, shops, and households, even though it could easily be donated or given away to those who are food insecure.
As reported by Feeding America, 34 million in the U.S. face hunger. Feeding America partners with stores, restaurants, and even farmers to recuse food and distribute it to various food banks serving the community. Each year, 108 billion pounds of food is squandered, which equates to 130 billion meals and $408 billion that is thrown out.
Feeding America has always been a promising organization that is dedicated to saving food and ending hunger. In 2021, the Feeding America network rescued 4.7 billion pounds of groceries. That food went directly to meals for people facing hunger, making Feeding America the largest food rescue organization in the country, and they are even more proactive during the holiday season.
Many families come together to enjoy all different kinds of meals. Cooking up a feast for immediate, and extended family can result in an excessive amount of leftovers. These meals can be stored so that they last for a week or more of dinners and lunches. Although, eating the same food repeatedly can become tiring. Getting bored with the same meals causes lots of families to just throw them away. Instead of discarding old food, it can be donated to food banks or even composted at home.
On the United States Department of Agriculture’s website, 30-40 percent of America's food supply is bungled and that number goes up by 25 percent during the holidays. It is important to be mindful of things that can be taken for granted. Many families struggle every year to provide for themselves, and anything that we as a community can do to help is more than appreciated.
Most of the time when food is thrown out, it’s done without thinking there is any other option, because things have gone past the expiration date, or it’s just food that was bought and never got eaten. Luckily, there are many feasible ways to avoid this, such as making a grocery list. Although it sounds simple, people tend to overbuy during the holidays, especially without a list. Going through recipes and making sure exactly how much food is needed will impact a lot.
Along with that, take inventory of things already in the kitchen. Many people want to start fresh when making something and buy all new ingredients. However, the food in the fridge is just as good as what one will buy, if prepared and stored correctly.
A big reason food gets thrown out is people saying they buy it, and then it just goes bad. Knowing how to properly store food is a game changer. Store greens with a paper towel in a plastic container, tomatoes, and bananas can be left on the counter and must be handled gently to avoid bruising, and potatoes and onions can be stored in cool, dark places.
Composting is one of the most effective ways to divert leftover food from ending up in landfills, and it’s easy to do. Backyard composting is an excellent way to provide nutrition to a garden, or for the earth in general. A composting pile can consist of vegetable peelings, fruit waste, tea bags, plant prunings, crushed egg shells, coffee grounds, nut shells, grass clippings, and so much more.
Another way to use leftovers creatively is by finding recipes and other ways to reuse food rather than toss it out because it isn't fresh. Vegetable scraps and peels can be made into soup, apples or blueberries that are soft work perfectly when cooked in oatmeal, stale bread can be made into croutons or egg strata, and slightly wilted vegetables are great for soups or stir-fries. One of the best things about soup is you can make it out of pretty much anything.
Reusing and repurposing food can be done in fun and delicious ways, and doing simple things like these helps the planet. Also donating or supporting organizations that are dedicated to preventing food waste is a massive help. There are also smaller businesses that reuse all kinds of things like Coffee Cherry Co – turning coffee’s fruit into flour, Toast Ale – using bread to produce beers, Fruitleather – using fruit leftovers to create leather, Wholy Greens – pasta made out of wonky vegetables, Nam Mushrooms – using coffee ground waste to grow mushrooms.
Supporting these places along with taking measures at home to prevent waste reduces methane emissions from landfills, lowers your carbon footprint, conserves energy and resources, and prevents pollution involved in the growing, manufacturing, transporting, and selling of food. Above all, when we waste less we take a step closer to ending hunger.