Your tips to reduce food waste

Prolong the life of cut fruit

To keep cut fruit fresh longer, store it in airtight containers in the fridge. This reduces exposure to air and moisture, slowing spoilage. And if it’s cut up into bite-size pieces, it’s easier to distribute into lunchboxes, and to eat as a snack so will be eaten quicker! You can also mix up your pre-cut fruit with a dollop of yoghurt to make a quick and refreshing fruit salad for breakfast or as a light dessert.
Do add lemon juice or a sprinkle of salt water to apples so they don’t brown as quickly in the fridge.

By: Naomi, Auckland

Freezing in silicone pans

Instead of freezing small items in ice cube trays use various sized silicone muffin tins. Much easier to release when frozen and repack into a sealable bag. To prevent spills place the silicone on a similar sized metal baking pan before filling and placing in the freezer.

By: Mary, Auckland

Using up old ingredients in baking

A great way to use up the last of any food in your kitchen (eg. last bit of yogurt, sour cream, peanut butter) is to use in in baking. Leftover yogurt or sour cream can be used in cakes etc. That last little bit of peanut butter in your cupboard can be used in cookies. Great way to use the last of those ingredients before they go off or pass their date, plus you get fresh, homemade baking out of it!

By: Jess, Whakatane

Plan your menu

Every week we plan what we’ll have for dinner each night. We make a list and we buy the things we need. If there are any leftovers we have those for lunch the next day. If there are half used ingredients then we’ll plan to make a meal with them before they go off. With only a little bit of planning its possible to have no waste at all!

By: Julia Kelly, Auckland

Use up broccoli stalks

I use broccoli stalks by grating them into pasta sauce or adding them to homemade pesto.

By: Helen Howard, Napier

Using online resources

I often use meal planners or Chat GPT. Put a list of ingredients I have and then see what recipes come up. And if I don’t want to make something new, its fried rice or a pasta bake with cheese.

By: Ri D, Auckland

Excess fruit and/or vegetables

Apricot, apple, pear trees (and many more!) develop heavily laden branches of fruit throughout the warmer seasons, often falling to the ground which can be overwhelming. When using fruit to make jam, stewing for cereals/crumbles – once you’ve filled own freezer/pantry, gift some to neighbours, community kai pantries and family/friends. Others with excess vegetables could advertise within own circles that they have for example basil, coriander, courgettes, silverbeet etc and happy to swap for something else. Everyone benefits and no food is wasted. Note: My neighbours gifted me jars of apricot jam because they couldn’t keep up with their productive tree. Win-Win. I don’t have an apricot tree but love this fruit, also with limited spare time so appreciate having homemade jam to enjoy.

By: Maria Lamb, Christchurch

Less food shopping

Go to the supermarket when you’re not hungry and take shopping list and limited # of bags with you. Downsize to small trolley or a basket to buy only what you need plus a treat. Less food waste if you don’t buy in the first place.

By: M Edgar, Invercargill

Happy neighbourhoods

Share vegetables and fruit with your neighbours as this increases community well-being and saves food wasting.

By: Bradie Paul, Opotiki

Feijoa lovers!

Want to get every last bit out of your beloved feijoas?
You can use the skins to make cake. Just like any cake or loaf recipe that uses grated zucchini, you can grate your feijoa skins and add them. It gives a good zing and moistness and surprisingly pairs really well with chocolate and spices.
I even freeze extra skins so that I can make it once feijoa season has ended.

Here’s a recipe I use but you can substitute in any recipe you like:
– 125g butter softened
– 2 C brown sugar
– 1/2 C white sugar
– 3 eggs
– 2.5 C flour
– 1/4 C cocoa powder
– 1tsp vanilla essence
– 1/2 C plain/Greek yoghurt
– 1tsp cinnamon
– 1/2 tsp mixed spice
– 1/2 tsp salt
– 3C grated feijoa skins (or zucchini)
– 1/2 to 1 C chocolate drops

Cream 125g butter 1C brown sugar and 1/2 C white sugar.
Add 3 eggs one at a time with spoonfuls of flour to prevent curdling. 2.5C flour
Add 1 tsp vanilla essence and 1/2C yoghurt, mix well.
Sift in 1/4C cocoa, 2tsp baking soda,1tsp cinnamon, 1/2tsp mixed spice, 1/2 tsp salt, partially combine.
Add 3C grated feijoa skins (or zucchini), do not overmix.
Pour into 25cm greased cake or tin.
Sprinkle with 1/2-1 cup of chocolate drops.
Bake 170 degrees for 40mins.
Enjoy!

By: Tesca Edwards, Wellington

Give carrots a longer storage life

When purchasing carrots, store them in a sealed container lined with a paper towel and place them in your fridge’s vegetable storage bin. They can last 2 to 3 months this way, but remember to replace the paper towel if it becomes too damp.

By: Irene Field, Hamilton

Kitchen Sink Soup/Stir Fry

Once a week, usually towards the end of the week before the next weeks shop, we do either a kitchen sink soup or a kitchen sink stir fry. Anything that needs using up from the produce drawer goes in, any open cans of beans, chickpeas, coconut milk, tomato – there’s no end to the deliciousness you can create with simple things like this. If we’re doing the soup we add onion, garlic and veggie broth. If we’re doing the stir fry we add red curry paste and rice. So easy to ensure that food is never wasted.

By: Rachel, Maungaturoto

“Use everything” meals

We have a couple of meals in the weekly meal plan, scattered through the week, that are designed to use anything/everything that’s in the fridge that needs to be eaten. Our “bolognese” sauce is vegetable based, and often has stuff like need-to-be-used carrots, broccoli stems etc. Minestrone is another one – uses up whatever veg are there, a miscellaneous potato, cauliflower stems, etc. Having that planned and scattered through the week means we’re never throwing out old veg, it is all used. And we’re getting it all from Misfit! Spending just $50 on their veggie box each week gives the basis of all meals for a vegetarian family of 5.

By: Elise, Whakatane

Shop the kitchen before the supermarket

Shop weekly – check the fridge, freezer, and pantry then make a meal plan for the week based on what is already in the house, then make a list of any extra things that are needed for the week. Don’t throw away broccoli or cauliflower stalks, they can be grated and added into bolognese, chilli con carne or macaroni cheese for an extra boost of veges.

By: Suzanne Wells, Auckland

Arancini Patties

If you have left over rice or rice risotto make arancini patties. Mix the rice with an egg and and a little flour add any leftover veggies or meat and season well. Mix well until combined. Push mixture into an ice cream scoop, press in well. Pop these onto a board flatten slightly and chill for at least 2 hours. Once chilled coat in breadcrumbs or seasoned flour and shallow fry  until golden.

By: Linda Baker, Auckland

Waste not want not – Freeze it

Don’t throw away vege end like carrot tops, peelings broccoli stalks. Put them in the freezer. I have a bag of scraps which is great for making stock. A lot of what gets thrown out has the best flavour, nutrients.

By: Heather Rigby, Christchurch

Use up the odd bits

Anything you have leftover can be put into a tortilla wrap, rolled up and either popped into the air fryer or oven until crispy. This makes great lunches, after school snacks or a quick meal.

By: Linda Baker, Auckland

Storing milk

Place milk in main fridge as close to the back as possible – not the door! Will last twice as long.

By: Jimpy, Auckland