The cost of living crisis escalated further this week as inflation reached a forty-year high.
Households can expect to pay significantly more for food, as well as pretty much everything else. With millions of us already feeling the squeeze amid soaring energy bills, it has never been more important to try to make savings where we can.
On average, we're already paying more than £400 more a year for our groceries than we were a year ago - and it's about to get worse.
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Figures have also revealed the average family spends over £470 a year on food that is thrown in the bin. And with the UK wasting millions of tonnes of food each year, trying to cut back on waste is a great way to reduce how much you spend - as well as helping the planet.
The ECHO spoke to budget expert Natalia Lachim from Discount Code has shared her tips for making the most-thrown-away foods last longer, along with how to avoid making them go off before they should.
Potatoes
Almost six million potatoes are thrown away in the UK each year. To avoid having to chuck yours out, you should keep potatoes in a cool, dark, and dry place.
Don’t store them next to onions, as onions produce high levels of ethylene gas, which causes nearby produce to ripen and spoil faster, and store them in a basket, paper bag or bowl to allow for air circulation, rather than in plastic bags which trap moisture.
Bread
Millions of loaves' worth of bread are binned each year, and while bread is best eaten within two or three days of purchasing it there are ways of making it last longer. Put any slices you want to keep in a paper bag or a reusable bread bag and store it in the freezer – then you can take out a few slices at a time, as and when you need them.
As with potatoes, you should store bread in a cool and dry area like a bread bin or in a cupboard.
Milk
Most of us have probably thrown spoiled milk out before now, and it may be because we've been making the same common error. While the shelves on the doors of fridges seem like a great place to store milk, this is a no-no, as the temperature here can fluctuate.
Instead, we should be storing milk within the fridge where the temperature is cooler and more stable. Milk can also be frozen for up to six weeks but remember to thaw it slowly in the fridge when you’re ready to use it.
Cheese
Another item that is often binned, cheese is best stored in the vegetable compartment of a fridge, because it's not too cold. Cheese needs to be able to breathe so it doesn’t get sweaty or dry out.
Waxed paper or baking paper is best, as plastic or clingfilm can encourage mould to develop, and keep it in an airtight container to stop the smell from spreading to the rest of the fridge.
Apples
To make your apples last as long as possible, keep them away from bananas as, like onions, these produce ethylene gas, which can cause them to spoil quicker. Store them in the fridge; they like humidity so keep them in a plastic bag or cover with a damp paper towel.
Apples with stems last longer than those without, as microorganisms can enter the apple through the detached stem and lead to decaying quicker.
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