SNAP4CT
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Categories >
      • Kid Friendly Recipes
      • No Added Sugar
      • Vegetarian Recipes
      • Heart Healthy Recipes
      • Five Ingredients or Less
      • Quick and Easy Recipes
    • Breakfast
    • Breads and Muffins
    • Desserts
    • Dips and Salsas
    • Drinks and Smoothies
    • Meatless Meals
    • Meals with Meat
    • Salads
    • Side Dishes
    • Snacks
    • Soups and Stews
    • Sodium Free Spice Blends
    • Recetas
  • Farmers Markets
    • Find a Farmers Market
    • CT Crop Calendar
    • Using SNAP/EBT at Farmers Markets
  • Education
    • Healthy Eating >
      • MyPlate
      • Understanding The Nutrition Label
      • Added Sugar
      • Healthy Snacking Tips
      • Calories Needed Each Day
      • What is "enough" fruits and vegetables
      • Recipe Videos
    • Budget Shopping >
      • Healthy Shopping on a Budget
      • What Can $16 Buy?
      • Budget Pantry
    • Diabetes >
      • Healthy Eating with Diabetes
      • "Diabetes-Friendly" Recipe Guide
    • Heart Health
    • Exercise Tips
    • Physical Literacy
    • Water First for Your Thirst
  • SNAP4CT Blog
  • Resources
    • DSS Offices and SNAP Help
    • FAQ
    • Free Health Events in CT
    • Organizations
    • SNAP-Ed Events Calendar
    • Healthy Food Pantry Donations

SNAP4CT Blog

Your Guide to Preventing Food Waste: Part 2

5/19/2020

22 Comments

 
Get More From Your Food

Get More From Your Food!

In last month’s first part of Your Guide to Preventing Food Waste, you learned about food dates, food safety, and foods that last longer. This month you’ll learn even more tips to get the most value from your food. We'll explain how to store foods so they don’t spoil, how to use every bit of the food you buy, and how different forms of food can help you prevent waste and save money.  

Store Food Properly

Food can spoil quickly if it is not stored properly. Follow these tips to be sure that your food stays fresh and safe longer.
  • Cool quickly. Get perishable foods into the refrigerator or a cooler as quickly as possible.
  • Organize your pantry and fridge. Keep older items in the front. This will remind you to use them first. Remember FIFO (first in, first out).
  • Avoid the refrigerator door. Try not to store the most perishable foods in the door of the refrigerator. The temperature in the door changes more frequently and is warmer than the shelves or the back of the fridge.
  • Freeze foods. Freezing stops bacteria from growing and will make foods last for months longer. This is an especially good tip for any fruits and vegetables that are about to go bad. Once frozen they make a great addition to a smoothie or a soup.
  • Keep air out. Store foods in air-tight containers. For packaged foods like cereal, remove as much air as possible before sealing the bag tightly with a clip. 
  • Pay extra attention to fruits and vegetables. Find Helpful Tips for Green Leafy Vegetables, learn to store fruits and vegetables with this guide (PDF) from HalfYourPlate.ca, and see the videos below to Save Your Greens and Regrow Your Greens.

Food Storage Chart


Keep this helpful 1-page Food Storage Chart (PDF) on your refrigerator. It serves as a great reminder of how long you can safely keep some of the most perishable foods.
Food Storage Chart PDF

Eat All Parts of a Food

One of the best ways to prevent waste is by eating every bit of a food. Here are some suggestions:
Veggie Top Pesto
  • Make a simple Veggie Pesto with leftover green tops.
  • Toast stale bread or cereal and use as breadcrumbs.
  • Wash potatoes well with a veggie brush, and then eat the skins.
  • Compost the skins of other fruits and veggies to help perk up plants. Learn how to compost here.
  • Don’t be scared of bruised fruit! Cut off the brown parts, the rest is usually delicious. Brown bananas are especially tasty when frozen and used in a smoothie like this Mango Banana Smoothie.


Explore Foods in All Forms

Fresh foods often taste best, but as you already learned last month, they don’t last very long. That’s where frozen, jarred, and canned foods really come in handy. If you follow this blog you know that we especially LOVE frozen fruits and frozen vegetables without sauces. They are convenient, inexpensive, and filled with nutrients.

When using canned foods, keep in mind they tend to be high in sodium (salt). Look for reduced sodium canned soups and vegetables. Rinse canned foods like tuna or vegetables to remove the extra sodium in the brine. Choose canned or jarred fruits without added sugar, and rinse those options as well to cut back on the sugar.  

Find Even More Ideas ...

5 Long Lasting Fruits & Veggies
How to Use Fruits & Veggies that are about to go Bad

Save Your Greens

Regrow Your Greens


Print Friendly and PDF
22 Comments

      Subscribe to our
      ​blog & receive a FREE cookbook!

    Subscribe
    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Cooking School
    Cooking Tips
    Exercise
    For The Kids
    Grocery Shopping
    Growing Your Food
    Holidays
    Meal Plans
    Nutrition Tips
    Recipes
    Saving $$

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016


​Services

Healthy Living Tips
Recipes
Search Tool


​Suppo
rt

About Us
Contact
FAQ
Privacy


Picture
Husky Nutrition at UConn Health
195 Farmington Avenue, MC 6030
Farmington, CT 06032​
Picture
SNAP-ED Event Calendar
© COPYRIGHT 2018.  ​ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

This information was funded by the USDA's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - SNAP.  
SNAP helps low-income people buy nutritious food for a better diet.
​To get more information contact the CT Department of Social Services at
1-855-626-6632 or www.CT.gov/dss.


This institution is an equal opportunity provider.​
​Nondiscrimination Statement
Aviso de No Discriminación
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Categories >
      • Kid Friendly Recipes
      • No Added Sugar
      • Vegetarian Recipes
      • Heart Healthy Recipes
      • Five Ingredients or Less
      • Quick and Easy Recipes
    • Breakfast
    • Breads and Muffins
    • Desserts
    • Dips and Salsas
    • Drinks and Smoothies
    • Meatless Meals
    • Meals with Meat
    • Salads
    • Side Dishes
    • Snacks
    • Soups and Stews
    • Sodium Free Spice Blends
    • Recetas
  • Farmers Markets
    • Find a Farmers Market
    • CT Crop Calendar
    • Using SNAP/EBT at Farmers Markets
  • Education
    • Healthy Eating >
      • MyPlate
      • Understanding The Nutrition Label
      • Added Sugar
      • Healthy Snacking Tips
      • Calories Needed Each Day
      • What is "enough" fruits and vegetables
      • Recipe Videos
    • Budget Shopping >
      • Healthy Shopping on a Budget
      • What Can $16 Buy?
      • Budget Pantry
    • Diabetes >
      • Healthy Eating with Diabetes
      • "Diabetes-Friendly" Recipe Guide
    • Heart Health
    • Exercise Tips
    • Physical Literacy
    • Water First for Your Thirst
  • SNAP4CT Blog
  • Resources
    • DSS Offices and SNAP Help
    • FAQ
    • Free Health Events in CT
    • Organizations
    • SNAP-Ed Events Calendar
    • Healthy Food Pantry Donations