Avoid Wasting Food

Safefood

Food waste is bad for the environment and bad for our pockets.

There are lots of reasons for wasting food, from buying too much to food going out of date. Here are some small steps you can take to reduce food waste:

Plan ahead

  • Make a weekly meal plan, choosing recipes that use similar ingredients.
  • Use your meal plan to make a shopping list. Check your cupboards to see what ingredients you already have.

Shop smartly

  • Stick to your list at the supermarket and only buy what you need.
  • Check use-by-dates to avoid buying food that will need to be used quickly.

Storage

The way you store food has a big impact on how long it lasts. Follow these tips:

  • Check the label for advice on how to store food.
  • Put new items to the back, and older items to the front of the fridge/cupboard.
  • Label all foods with the name and the date before freezing so they can be easily identified.

Love your leftovers

  • Have leftovers for lunch the next day or freeze to use at a later date.
  • At the end of each week combine any leftover vegetables to make a pot of soup, an omelette or a stir fry.
  • Blend leftover fruit into a smoothie or cook it in a saucepan to make a fruit sauce.

Useful resources

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BDA will enrich your events with food demos, health and nutrition check-ups, competitions...
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We will enrich your events with food demos, health and nutrition check-ups, competitions...
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Vital Nutrition offers a complete range of corporate health and workplace wellbeing...
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Taste Buds is a resource that helps children aged 8 to 11 enjoy learning about the...
Fun, fast food for less. This is a practical six-week nutrition programme aimed at...
This course is aimed at pharmacists and aims to explain the science behind the different...
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Your Work Ready dietitian will visit your organisation. They will ask what you want, see...
Are you often too tired to cook? Not organised enough to have breakfast and lunch sorted...
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Cancer Focus NI, Keeping Well vans are mobile drop-in units which bring health checks,...
This course would be of particular use to health professionals and students wanting to...
We will enrich your events with food demos, health and nutrition check-ups, competitions...
Develop healthier eating habits, be more active, and get on track to start losing weight...
Our free Easy Meals app is a great way to eat foods that are healthier for you. You’ll...
Food diary, exercise tracker and diet coach
Nutrition scanner
Use this calculator to check your body mass index (BMI) and find out if you are a healthy weight. Or, use it to check your child's BMI centile.