Whether you’re a foodie or a casual eater, we all think about it at least some of the time: food waste. The act of not “using” more food than you need has been around for many years, and is possibly as old as food itself. This, of course, includes modern households. There’s a good chance you’ve had a parent tell you to “finish your plate”, or you’ve at least heard the popular Weird Al song, “Eat It”.
Such an old discussion is sure to have people divided. Most agree that wasting food is bad, in general – but the spectrum is surprisingly varied. Regardless of what your stance on food waste is, I want to talk about my history with it, how I currently try and tackle it, and when I think wasting food might actually be okay.
What Is Food Waste?
If you don’t know, food waste is the act of wasting food, plain and simple. But the term “waste” isn’t as concrete as one might think. Food waste can come in many forms, like making more food than one can reasonably finish before it goes bad, or piling your plate too high at the buffet. These sorts of distinctions may seem arbitrary, but between them I believe lies a point where wasting food goes from “unacceptable” to “it’s fine this time”.
My History With, and Current Stance on, Food Waste
My history with food waste starts very early on. From as far back as I can remember, I was encouraged to always finish my food. This fostered a lot of habits; some positive, and others not so much.
In late adolescence / early adulthood, my drive to reduce food waste would result in overeating. Obviously I love food, but overeating wasn’t a healthy solution. It took a while to recognize those tendencies and find workable solutions, which I share with you below.
Currently, I think it’s important to consider how you’re choosing to reduce food waste. I still struggle with striking the right balance, but hopefully these ideas can help you reduce food waste in easier, more healthy ways.
How I Reduce Food Waste
Firstly, I try and make smaller amounts of food. While I like the idea of “batch cooking”, making more than a week’s worth of meals within a few day’s time doesn’t quite work for me. I often end up shoving part of what I made into the freezer, never to be reheated, and eventually thrown out. Making, say, 4 servings of soup instead of 12 is a good way to combat this.
Secondly, I try and plan meals around my soon-to-expire ingredients. If I have some milk that’s about to go off, I might make some baked goods – or even just drink it. If some bread is teetering on the edge of mold, I’ll make some grilled cheese sandwiches. Despite what I said earlier about the freezer, freezing things can be a great way to preserve them if you plan on actually using them.
This may sound counterproductive, but if something is about to expire or I just don’t know how to use it, I may just… let it happen. I’ll think about what to do until then, of course, but not stress about it if it goes bad. This can help prevent the “food waste fallacy”, which is a thing I just made up, but try to explain below.
How I Don’t Reduce Food Waste
As mentioned previously, I don’t overeat to reduce food waste. I think it can be physically and mentally damaging, and is an unhealthy solution overall. If I accidentally make too much food, or I find myself with more food in the fridge than I can reasonably finish, I just do my best without overeating. Of course, if you want to indulge in that way with no ill effects, then I can’t fault you for that.
I also don’t force myself to eat food I don’t enjoy. Similar to the first reason, I think it can be mentally damaging – especially if done frequently. If I make something that just isn’t edible, then I allow myself to be upset about it for a while before throwing it out. I will occasionally try and repurpose said inedible food, but that can turn from a good idea to an example of the “food waste fallacy”.
Basically, the food waste fallacy is what I call when, in an effort to reduce food waste, you try and make some food or meal – only for it to be inedible, which wastes more food in the process. Say you have some vegetables that are about to go bad, and you decide to use them for soup. You grab those vegetables, some stock or broth, and maybe some fresh herbs.
Since you’re (probably) just winging it, good results aren’t guaranteed. You may end up with something fine, but you could also end up wasting not only those vegetables, but also the stock/broth, the fresh herbs, and whatever else you used. This can be tempered with experience, but I’d say the possibility is always there.
In this situation, one might simply “power through” and eat the bad soup. As I’ve said, I don’t do that and I don’t advocate doing that, but many will insist on it. I think a healthier approach would be to identify what went wrong, and try to learn from it going forward without forcing yourself to stomach an unpleasant meal.
Overall, I think reducing food waste is important. However, I think taking care of your physical and mental health is more important. I’m sure many of you will continue to chow down on less-than-pleasant food in the name of food waste reduction. I can’t stop you, and if that’s your preferred method, I say go for it.
For those who, like me, struggle with reducing food waste in ways that work for us, I hope these insights have been helpful. Remember these tips, remember to watch your food usage, but most importantly – remember to take care of yourself.
Thanks for reading.
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