When I throw out the trash I realize how much money I actually lose with food that's gone bad. But I'm not alone. According to one study, nearly 12% of the food we buy eventually ends up in the trash.
Here are some tips that can help you reduce the amount of food you throw out.
1. Rotate the Items in Your Refrigerator and Cupboard.
I have a very bad habit of shoving the items in my fridge to the back to make room for my newly purchased groceries. What this does is increases the chance that the older items in the fridge will not be eaten in time and have to be thrown out.
I've now tried to rotate my refrigerator items, moving the newly bought items to the back and the older items to the front. In this way the old items get consumed first reducing waste. The same thing now applies to my cupboards.
2. Set the Refrigerator to the Proper Temperature.
Sometimes I have to throw away milk that has soured. It appears that the temperature of my refrigerator may have something to do with it.
According to the US Department of Agriculture the temperature of your refrigerator should be less than 40F. Anything above this allows bacteria to grow rapidly resulting in food spoilage and possible food poisoning.
The problem, as I realized, is that the control in the back of the refrigerator does not correlate closely with the fridge temperature. In order to determine the correct temperature of your refrigerator you need a refrigerator thermometer. These can usually be purchased for less than $10.
In my opinion its well worth the cost.
3. Consider an Ice Chest to Carry Home Groceries
Another clue to why my milk sometimes spoils prematurely is that I often make several errands in addition to my supermarket stop.
Once you take items from the supermarket refrigerator case the temperature of the product frequently rises above 40F, the point at which bacteria start multiplying.
According to the US Department of Agriculture you should keep such products at temperatures above 40F for no more than 2 hours.
If you have a long supermarket trip, long ride home, or make several errands you're grocery items could hover above 40F for several hours.
In such cases it may make sense to to take a portable ice chest containing ice or gel packs to keep your items cold until you reach home.
Taking a few simple steps could help reduce the amount of food you throw out literally saving you hundreds of dollars each year.
Editor's Note: This tip was submitted by Charlie from the excellent Pay Less for Food blog which features many more excellent money-saving articles. I also highly recommend signing up for their RSS Feed.
When I throw out the trash I realize how much money I actually lose with food that's gone bad. But I'm not alone. According to one study, nearly 12% of the food we buy eventually ends up in the trash.