Waste Not, Save More

We’ve had a really positive start to the new year here at Green City. We are lucky enough to be working with Lia’s Kitchen and Cynefin Cardiff on such an exciting and important series of events for Love Food Hate Waste , promoting awareness and action to reduce food waste in our homes. You may have seen us already out on roadshows in #Roath and #Splott giving out tasters of warming soup and surprising savoury cakes, as well as tools and information about how how easy it can be to start wasting less in your household. We have two more of these events coming up on Saturday 27th February and Tuesday 8th March so don’t worry if you missed us.

We also have two exciting cook up events with Lia’s Kitchen coming up in February - you will prepare & cook tasty dishes whilst learning how to reduce your food waste, love your leftovers and even save money. Just a few places left so book yours now!

Don’t worry if you can’t make it to our events, inspired by Love Food Hate Waste here are our 5 easy actions to help you waste not, save more:

Get familiar with your fridge

Just by opening the fridge door and checking the ‘use by’ dates on what’s inside, you can begin saving! Meat, fish and ready meals are often the most expensive things we buy, so it helps to get into the habit of regularly checking the dates on perishable items. Move them into the freezer if you don’t think you’ll have time to eat them or cook them. Don’t forget to check those dairy items that get pushed to the back too. Understanding what the ‘best before’ and ‘use by’ labels really mean is key to making the most of your fridge and freezer.

Get store cupboard savvy

Keep your store cupboard and freezer well-stocked with a variety of canned, dried and frozen goods that you know you love to eat. Tinned beans, frozen vegetables, meat and fish and dried fruit, nuts, pasta & noodles, rice & grains, are all essentials with a long shelf life - meaning you will always have the ingredients standing by to pull together a delicious meal or to jazz up your leftovers. The trick is to replace items once you have used them up. It helps to keep a note stuck on the inside of the cupboard door - scribble down items as soon as you have finished them and check it when you write your shopping list.

Love your leftovers

There’s no need to throw away those leftovers – being crafty with your food is the clever way to save– and it really just means thinking before you throw. With a little bit of thought, you can create some delicious surprises from your leftovers. Lia’s Kitchen has shared her fantastic #Wastenot cake recipes with us and there is plenty of inspiration on the Love Food Hate Waste website.

Practice perfect portioning

Day after day we serve up basic staples - bread, rice, potatoes and pasta – but large amounts of these carbohydrates end up going straight in the bin. Are you getting your portions right? Use this online portion calculator to check and find a handy way to measure just the right amount. For instance, a mug full of rice will serve 4 adults.

Properly plan your meals

Planning your meals is one of the most effective ways you can cut wastage and food bills but we do realise this can be difficult with our busy lifestyles. So keep it simple - start by checking your fridge, freezer and store cupboard, and before you go shopping, write a list, so you don’t shop for things you already have. Then you can work out a weekly meal plan or at least decide on a few meals that you want to cook and then get creative with the leftovers.