Here in Blackburn with Darwen, almost half of the ‘rubbish’ in our burgundy bins is food. A lot of that is fresh fruit and veg, bread, dairy products, rice and pasta that could have been used.
- How can you stop food waste at home?
Some simple suggestions are:
- Making sure you eat everything on your plate
- Planning meals throughout the week to make sure you use all the ingredients up in your cupboards
- Making sure your fridge is at the right temperature (did you know it should be under 5 degrees!)
- I have leftover ingredients, what can I do with them?
Think about what else you could use the ingredients for.
If you’re stuck for ideas, why not check out Love Food Hate Waste leftover recipes ideas: https://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/compleating
- What does the use by date mean on food packaging?
‘Use by’ refers to safety: you must not eat food past the ‘use by’ date. You cannot always smell the bacteria that causes food to spoil, so after the ‘use by’ date, the food may appear perfectly fine to eat, but could still lead to food poisoning.
Let’s be absolutely clear: you should NOT eat food after the ‘use by’ date – even if it looks and smells OK.
Top tip: you can freeze food right up to and including the ‘use by’ date. If you’re not sure you will eat it in time, freeze it for another day!
- What does the display until/sell by mean on food packaging?
These dates are for the shops – not us at home. You don’t need to worry about these.
Some products, such as uncut fruit and vegetables and wine, for example, aren’t required to have a date label, and there are specific regulations referring to hen’s eggs, which require the use of a Best Before date.
- Educational resources