There’s no way around it — groceries are expensive these days. And while you can’t control the prices on store shelves, one thing you can control is how much food actually gets eaten instead of tossed in the trash.
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Food waste can be a big problem for your budget and has an even bigger negative environmental impact. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the average family of four loses about $1,500 a year to uneaten groceries. This level of food loss and waste is costing you more than just what you pay at the grocery store.
Here are six expert-approved ways to reduce food waste at home and save more of your hard-earned money.
Shop in Bulk
“We love our Costco subscription,” said Lindsey Chastain, founder and CEO of The Waddle and Cluck, a platform that celebrates sustainable living, gardening and responsible farming. “Buying in bulk can save a lot of money on the things you buy on a regular basis.”
Chastain recommended keeping a log somewhere on your phone so you can compare regular prices with bulk prices. “For example, ground beef is $6 to $9 for 1 pound at my local Walmart, but $5 per pound at Costco, so I’m saving money by buying in bulk,” she explained.
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Plan Ahead
If you fail to shop with a plan, you plan to fail while grocery shopping. Making a list and sticking to it is also a great way to reduce consumer food waste and save money. There is no need to impulse buy fruits and vegetables if you are meal planning, as there is a good chance you are sending them off to die in your crisper.
“I like to make a specific meal plan before I go to the store so I don’t end up with ingredients that won’t get used and spoil,” Chastain said. “I also plan for bulk buying. Instead of buying several different meats for the week, I will pick one meat, buy it in bulk and make several varied recipes. That way I use the meat that I bought before it goes bad.”
Invest in Great Storage
Chastain suggested learning to can or getting a food saver to help reduce food waste and save money. “This will help your food last longer or allow you to stock up when there is a great sale,” she said.
Food loss occurs when you don’t take preventive measures to help your groceries have a longer shelf life. Food waste generates not only more items in your pantry or fridge that are not safe to eat, but also an unnecessary dent to your monthly expenses.
Start a Garden
Chastain explained she grows a lot of vegetables instead of having to buy them or, worse, process food products. “You can start a garden just about anywhere. You can grow on an apartment balcony, inside with grow lights or even in your front flower beds instead of planting flowers,” she said.
This way, you are essentially creating your own sustainable food bank. Not only will your health thank you, but so will your bottom line.
Check Your Refrigerator’s Temperature
Evie Graham, founder of WasteDirect, said that she has found that most refrigerators have temperature variations of up to 5 degrees between zones, which dramatically affects how quickly food spoils.
“The back sections often run cold enough to damage delicate produce through partial freezing while door storage exposes items to warm air each time the door opens,” she said. “Using a basic thermometer to identify your fridge’s cold and warm zones and then storing items accordingly, typically reduces waste by 20% to 30% without changing shopping habits whatsoever.”
Opt for Ingredient-Based Rather Than Meal-Based Preparation
Graham said that most household food waste stems from changing weekly preferences rather than simple neglect. Your grocery list can be edited to include food produced for an ingredient, not a snack, household.
“Through years of waste audits, I’ve observed that preparing individual ingredients rather than complete meals drastically reduces what gets thrown away by week’s end,” Graham explained. “Washing and chopping vegetables for flexible use provides the convenience of batch cooking without committing everything to specific dishes that become boring by Thursday.”
She added that adopting this preparation method typically reduces waste by 40% to 50% while still making weeknight cooking manageable.
Caitlyn Moorhead contributed to the reporting for this article.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 6 Ways To Cut Back on Food Waste To Save Grocery Money
