Saturday, October 12, 2013

Saturday Short Subjects: Know Your Fridge

America wastes nearly half of its food according to “food waste fighter” Jonathan  Bloom, author of the book American Wasteland. You may have heard about produce rotting in the field, either not picked because there was no one to harvest it, or left on the ground because it just doesn’t look good enough to sell.

But did you know that Americans waste nearly 25% of the food they take home?

What can you do?

You can start by making some small steps.
  • Shop with a list.
  • Buy only what you can use.
  • Use what you buy.
  • Store your purchases correctly.

The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) recently shared a great infographic: “The Refrigerator Demystified.” 


I thought I knew mine, but I learned a few things.

And, next time you pass a bin of “tomatoes with issues” at your local farmers’ market, consider taking them home with you. Ditto for apples. They both make great sauce.

For more on Jonathan Bloom and his work to reduce food waste, check out his blog, Wasted Food.

For more ideas on cutting food waste, check out my post from the past on how to put your freezer to work


Why Saturday Short Subjects? Some readers may recall  being dropped at the movie theater for the Saturday matinee — two action-packed feature films with a series of short subjects (cartoons or short movies, sometimes a serial cliffhanger) sandwiched in between. Often the short subjects were the most memorable, and enjoyable, part of the morning. That explains the name. The reason behind these particular posts is that we are all short on time. My Short Subject posts should not take me as long to write or you as long to read (or try).

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