9 Ways to Reduce Food Waste at Home

Save money and protect the environment with small steps

Sheryl Jean,

AARP

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En español

Published June 28, 2023

foods such as vegetables meat and cheese being thrown into a trash can

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Lillie Carlson often slices and dices food starting to turn for smoothies or soups, and she recently used leftover greens from creamed spinach to make a frittata. She also grows some of her own food and feeds scraps to animals on her property or composts.

“I don’t waste anything,” says the 50-year-old schoolteacher in Hollywood, Florida. “Food is so expensive. Since COVID, our grocery bill for a family of six has tripled.”

Whether you’re interested in saving money, living a more sustainable lifestyle or helping the environment, preventing food waste — even in small ways — can have a big impact.

Americans generate more than 66 million tons of food waste a year — 40 percent of that takes place at home, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Up to 40 percent of all food produced for human consumption in the United States is wasted, the agency notes.

“We all love food,” says Elaine Fiore in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, founder of the Food Conservation Alliance, who also spearheads the Food Waste Prevention Week national campaign. “No one sets out to waste food. Most people feel bad when food is wasted. It’s about shifting the narrative to looking at food as a valuable resource.”

Food waste can happen in a variety of ways — spoilage, overbuying and improperly storing food among them. Food is the number one material placed in landfills, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Reducing the amount of food that ends up in landfills can help lower greenhouse gas emissions since food is a major contributor to methane generated and released by landfills, the EPA says. It can also save you a lot of money.

To change your habits, experts advise starting with small steps.

First, “do a food waste audit — look critically at food getting tossed in your home, why and if it could have been eaten,” says Nina Sevilla, a sustainable food systems advocate at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). “Some people keep a journal for a week. Then identify what intervention could be best for your situation.”

Here are nine other tips to get you started:

1. Buy only what you need

One of the causes of food waste is overbuying, Sevilla says. Shop your pantry and refrigerator first to see what you can make, then make a grocery list. Consider making meal plans. Fiore suggests shopping from your fridge once a week to make a meal with leftovers or food that must be used. The NRDC’s SavetheFood.com offers digital tools for meal planning and prepping. SavetheFood.com’s online Guest-imator helps you estimate how much food you need.

2. Store food properly

Did you know you should store lemons in the refrigerator? And some fruit, such as bananas, apples and pears, should be stored separately because they release ethylene gas as they ripen, making other nearby produce spoil faster. Store dry goods, like oats and flour, in airtight containers to keep them fresh longer and keep away pests. SavetheFood.com offers many storage tips.

3. Freeze more often

Many types of food — from peeled bananas to blueberries to bread — can be frozen to extend their life. Freeze food in portions in airtight containers. Label and date the contents. Also, consider pickling, dehydrating, canning or making jam from food scraps or extra produce.

“I try to eat everything, but sometimes I miss the arugula hiding in the corner,” says Tracey Shafroth, 68, who lives in Douglas, Michigan. She puts all of her vegetable scraps in a large zipper bag in the freezer. When it’s full, she makes vegetable stock for soup.

4. Label food to eat first

Set aside a container labeled “Eat Me First” in the refrigerator or on the kitchen counter for food, such as berries and tomatoes, to eat first because it will spoil sooner.

5. Use all parts of food

Be creative. Use food scraps, peels or produce past its prime to make soups, casseroles, stir-fries, frittatas, baked goods or smoothies. Beet or carrot greens can be sautéed as a side dish. Leftovers can be doctored up. Check out these three sources of food scrap recipes: the NRDC’s SavetheFood.com, the free, digital Stop Food Waste Day cookbook, and Ikea’s free, downloadable The ScrapsBook: A Waste-Less Cookbook.

6. Understand date labels

Confused by expiration, sell-by, best-by and use-by dates on food? “Food date labels are often manufacturers’ best guess of when food is at its peak, but it has little to do with food safety, other than infant formula,” Sevilla says. Instead, rely on the sniff-and-taste test to determine if food is OK to eat, she suggests. Simplified and standardized food date labels have been proposed in Congress this year.

7. Don’t be afraid of imperfect produce

Fruits and vegetables that may be bruised or misshapen may be just as nutritious as other food but cost less. “Food doesn’t need to look perfect to taste good,” Sevilla says. Companies like Imperfect Foods, Misfits Market and Hungry Harvest will deliver imperfect goods to your door.

8. Grow your own food

Whether it’s growing herbs on the windowsill or planting fruit trees in the backyard, reduce the amount of food you buy by gardening. Homegrown food also has a smaller carbon footprint. If you don’t have space for a garden at home, consider joining a community garden in your neighborhood.

Carlson of Florida grows herbs, vegetables and fruit trees, such as mango, avocado and lychee, in a large garden. Not only does she save money by not buying as much at the supermarket, but she also shares her bounty with neighbors and colleagues. “I am feeding the community,” she says. One recent day, she brought 35 mangoes to school to share.

9. Start composting

Leftover inedible food scraps, like fruit peels, can be composted to aid new food growth and send less food waste to landfills. Composting is the natural process of breaking down food scraps and other organic material into nutrient-rich soil. You can compost in your yard or in a countertop bin in your kitchen. All of California and some cities, such as Boulder, Colorado, and Seattle, offer curbside compost service. Private companies offer home compost pickup and drop-off services in many areas, such as Compost Cab in Washington, D.C., CompostNow in several cities in five states and Viva La Compost in Las Vegas. Contact your town or city to see what’s available.

Shafroth of Michigan not only composts her own waste but also that of two neighbors. “It cranks out so much unbelievable soil,” which she uses in a large garden to grow vegetables, flowers and fruit trees, she says. “I’m teaching my 3½-year-old grandson all about composting and how it’s magic.”

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Sheryl Jean is a contributing writer who covers aging, business, technology, travel, health and human-interest stories. A former reporter for several daily metropolitan newspapers, her work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune and The Dallas Morning News and on the American Heart Association’s website.