Two Simple Ways to Stop Wasting Food and Save Money

October 12, 2025 •

4 min read

According to the United Nations, approximately one-third of all food produced globally for human consumption is lost or wasted every year. Learning what are two ways to stop wasting food can help you contribute to a more sustainable world, save money, and improve your nutritional diet in the process.

Quick Summary

This article explores two effective strategies—strategic meal planning and proper food storage—to help minimize food waste at home. It provides practical tips, creative ideas for using leftovers, and explains how these actions can lead to significant cost savings and better nutrition.

Key Points

Plan meals and shop smartly: Create a weekly meal plan and a precise shopping list to avoid buying unnecessary items that could go to waste.
Optimize food storage: Learn the best storage methods for different foods, such as separating ethylene-releasing fruits from other produce, to extend their freshness.
Embrace the freezer: Utilize your freezer as a "pause button" for bread, leftovers, and other items nearing their use-by date to save them for later.
Get creative with leftovers: Repurpose uneaten portions and scraps into new meals like soups, stews, or stir-fries to avoid throwing food away.
Understand food dates: Know the difference between "use-by" (safety) and "best-before" (quality) dates to prevent discarding perfectly edible food.
Save money and nutrients: Reducing food waste helps your budget by cutting grocery costs and ensures that the nutrients in the food you buy are actually consumed, not thrown out.

The Financial and Environmental Cost of Food Waste

Food waste isn't just a missed meal; it's a colossal drain on household budgets and a significant contributor to environmental problems. The resources used to grow, harvest, transport, and package food are all squandered when it gets thrown away. In industrialized nations, a large portion of this waste happens at the consumer level, making household habits a crucial area for change. By being more mindful of our food consumption, we can save money, reduce our carbon footprint, and ensure valuable nutrients don't end up in the landfill.

Method 1: Strategic Meal Planning and Smart Shopping

One of the most effective strategies to prevent food waste begins before you even enter the grocery store. Planning your meals and shopping with a clear list helps ensure you only buy what you need, rather than being tempted by impulse purchases or bulk deals that will spoil before you can use them.

Here is a simple process for smart shopping:

Inventory your kitchen: Before creating your plan, check your fridge, freezer, and pantry to see what you already have. Build your meal ideas around ingredients you need to use up soon. This “first in, first out” approach prevents forgotten items from going bad.
Create a weekly meal plan: Decide what you and your family will eat for each meal over the next week. This provides a clear roadmap for your grocery list and helps prevent a last-minute scramble that leads to ordering takeout or letting ingredients go to waste.
Make a precise shopping list: Based on your meal plan, write down every ingredient you need and the exact quantity. Avoid vague terms like "vegetables" or "fruit" and be specific (e.g., "2 carrots, 1 cucumber"). Sticking to this list is key to avoiding unnecessary purchases.
Shop more frequently for smaller amounts: While a large weekly shop might seem efficient, buying smaller quantities of fresh produce more regularly ensures your food is fresher and you're less likely to overbuy items that will spoil quickly.

Method 2: Master Proper Food Storage and Creative Repurposing

Even with the best planning, circumstances can change. Maybe you didn't feel like cooking, or a meal was unexpectedly cancelled. This is where mastering food storage and creatively using leftovers comes into play. Proper storage extends the life of food, while smart repurposing prevents uneaten portions from being discarded.

Proper Food Storage Best Practices


Food Item	Incorrect Storage Method	Correct Storage Method	Benefit
Fresh Herbs	Left in their original packaging or loose in the fridge.	Treat them like a bouquet of flowers: place stems down in a glass of water, cover loosely with a plastic bag, and refrigerate.	Keeps herbs fresh for up to two weeks, preserving flavor and nutrients.
Tomatoes	Stored in the refrigerator.	Kept at room temperature, away from direct sunlight. Refrigeration dulls their flavor and texture.	Maintains optimal taste and texture.
Bananas	Stored in a fruit bowl with other fruits.	Store away from other fruits. The ethylene gas they release can cause other produce to ripen and spoil faster.	Prevents premature ripening of neighboring fruits.
Potatoes and Onions	Stored together in the pantry.	Store in a cool, dark, and well-ventilated area, but separately. Onions release gases that cause potatoes to sprout more quickly.	Extends shelf life by preventing sprouting.
Leftovers	Left uncovered or in large, deep containers.	Store in clear, airtight containers in the fridge. For large portions, divide into shallower containers to cool faster.	Keeps food fresh and visible, preventing spoilage and forgetting.

Get Creative with Leftovers

Leftovers don't have to be a boring repeat of a previous meal. With a little creativity, they can be transformed into delicious new dishes.

Build-a-Meal Night: At the end of the week, hold a "build-a-meal" night using all the leftover odds and ends. A stir-fry is perfect for leftover veggies and proteins, while an omelet or frittata can incorporate leftover meats, potatoes, and cheeses.
Soups and Stocks: Vegetable scraps, herb stems, and meat bones can be simmered to create a flavorful homemade stock. Leftover roasted vegetables or cooked meats can be the base for a hearty soup.
The Freezer is Your Friend: The freezer is a powerful tool to put food on pause. Use it for bread nearing its best-by date, leftover sauces, cooked beans, or chopped vegetables. Proper labeling is essential to avoid mysterious "unidentified frozen objects".
Repurpose Overripe Fruit: Overripe fruit can be blended into a smoothie, mashed into banana bread, or stewed for a compote. Brown bananas are perfect for smoothies, while soft apples can be cooked down into a delicious sauce.

The Health and Nutritional Impact

When we throw away food, we aren't just discarding a physical item. We are wasting the embedded nutrients within it. A balanced diet is often easier to achieve when you're intentional about your food choices and minimize waste. For example, fresh fruits and vegetables are often thrown away simply because they don't look perfect, despite being just as nutritious as their blemish-free counterparts. By being creative with these "ugly" produce items, you can still reap all their vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

Conclusion

Adopting sustainable food habits is a journey, not a single action. By focusing on two core practices—smart meal planning and mastering food storage—you can make a tangible difference. These habits not only reduce your personal food waste but also lead to a more financially sound and nutritionally robust lifestyle. The impact extends beyond your own kitchen, contributing to a more efficient and less wasteful food system for everyone.

For more detailed guidance on reducing food waste at home, including specific food storage tips, consider visiting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's website.

Frequently Asked Questions

The leading causes of household food waste include not using food in time and purchasing more than is needed, often due to a lack of meal planning or buying into bulk deals.

Most leftovers can be safely kept in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. They should be stored in airtight, shallow containers to cool quickly, and reheated to at least 165°F (74°C) before eating.

The 'best-before' date indicates when a food product is at its peak quality in terms of flavor and texture. Unlike a 'use-by' date, it does not refer to food safety, and the food is often safe to eat after this date has passed, provided it has been stored properly.

Yes, 'ugly' fruits and vegetables—those with cosmetic imperfections—are just as nutritious as their perfect-looking counterparts and are perfectly safe to eat. Choosing them can help reduce food waste at the retail and consumer level.

Vegetable scraps, such as stems, peels, and wilted greens, can be used in numerous ways. Simmer them to make a flavorful homemade vegetable stock, add them to soups, or use them in a frittata.

To prevent bread from going stale, store it in the freezer. It can be easily defrosted when needed or toasted directly from frozen. This is more effective than storing it in the fridge, which can make it go stale faster.

When meal planning for a busy week, focus on simple dishes that share common ingredients, cook in bulk to freeze extra portions, or plan for one meal that uses up all leftover ingredients, like a soup or a stir-fry.