the Rotten Truth about wasted fod KNOW YOUR DATES • A "Sell-By" date tells the store how long to display the product for sale. You should buy the product before the date expires. • A "Best If Used Before" date is recommended for the best flavor or quality. It is not a purchase-by or safety date. • A "Use-By" date is the last date recommended by the manufacturer for the use of the produce while at peak quality. • "Closed or Coded" dates are packing numbers for use by the manufacturer. source: www.fsis.usda.gov NOV E M B E R - D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 4 41 In the U.S., 40% of the food produced is never eaten. Instead, this food is thrown away and goes to landfills, where it rots and produces about 25% of the country’s methane emissions. When food is wasted, so are the resources that went into producing it. Roughly 25% of fresh water used in the U.S. goes into producing food that will be thrown away. The area of land needed to grow all this uneaten food is 1.5 times the size of the U.S. In addition to its environmental impacts, wasted food has a serious impact on our wallets and the overall economy. Americans spend $165 billion every year on food that will be wasted. The average family of 4 spends $1,600 a year on food that will be thrown away. At the same time that so much money is being spent on good food that goes to the landfill, 1 in 6 Americans do not have a secure supply of food. If just 15% of the food wasted each year were available for consumption, it could feed more than 25 million Americans who are food-insecure. Through small shifts in shopping habits, food preparation and food storage, we can create less waste, save money, and keep the resources used to produce our food from going to waste. The following tips can help you reduce wasted food in your home: • Shop Smarter—Make a shopping list with meals in mind and buy only what you need. • Store Food Properly —Make sure food is stored in the right containers or place in the refrigerator so that it can last as long as possible. • Use Your Frezer—Freeze food that you know you won’t be able to eat in time. • Get Creative—Use leftover foods to make casseroles, soups, smoothies or whatever you like! • Know Your Dates—Understand what “sell-by,” “use-by,” and “best-by” dates really mean. Visit www.fsis.usda.gov to learn about dates and food labelling. • Eat This First!—Move food that needs to be eaten soon to a designated “Eat This First!” bin or shelf. • Encourage Food Recovery and Donation—Restaurants, catering companies, and other organizations can donate leftover food to local food banks or other charitable organizations that feed the hungry. The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Act protects donors of apparently wholesome food from liability. • Take the Food: Too God to Wa ste Chalenge—Visit www.westcoastclimateforum.com/food to learn how to measure and decrease the food waste in your household. With the holidays quickly approaching, it is especially important to remember the effects of wasted food. Across the U.S., three times as much food is wasted during the holiday season as at any other time of year. Making small changes as we prepare for holiday celebrations, such as being careful when planning and serving meals, and donating excess to those in need, can help make the holiday season more plentiful for everyone. And remember, no matter what time of year it is— food is too precious to waste!
NVLife_NovDec_2014
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