Wasting Food: A threat to our environment

FOOD is our basic necessity,we need to consume it everyday and good food appetite enables us to perform our daily activities efficiently.We think we're a "green" nation but still, three million tonnes of food are being wasted every year. That's 145kg per person and collectively, is enough to feed the entire nation for three weeks. Apparently the most wasted foods are fruit and veg, followed by meat, bread and dairy, and the main problem is that we buy or cook too much.Once we throw out food, it rots in landfill and produces methane, an extremely harmful greenhouse gas. So we're all wasting good food and money, while also adversely affecting the environment. Many households suffer from a lack of planning when going food shopping, resulting in buying more than what is needed. Just stick to the following rules and you'll find your bills, and your waste, will decrease:

* Once a week, sit down and organise a menu for the whole week.

* Figure out what amount of each ingredient makes up one portion; for example, half a cup of rice per person, etc.

* Add up these portions to figure out exactly how much you need per meal.

* When you go shopping, stick to the list. Avoid impulse buys as they tip the balance and result in throw-outs. Lots of us get confused over food labels. A use-by label is an exact date after which a food product shouldn't be used, so don't buy foods that are too close to this date.If something has a best-before date, you do not have to throw it out on this date — it's just specifying that it will taste better before this date. Ensure you don't buy overripe fruit and veg, else you'll be chucking them out with the trash within a day.When storing food, use cling wrap, plastic containers and sealable plastic bags to keep them fresher for longer. And why not rearrange your fridge into sections, such as sauces on the top shelf, then dairy, then meat then veg at the bottom? This way, you'll avoid finding surprises at the back.What to do with your leftoversSo many of us suffer from a lack of confidence when it comes to cooking. If you find your fridge full of leftovers, try these easy use-it-up recipes:

* Bubble and squeak. Roughly chop leftover cooked vegetables such as carrot, potato, leek or cabbage and mix in bowl with one egg, onion, garlic then form patties with hands. Fry in oil and butter over low heat for five minutes on each side, then turn up the heat and crisp up. They're delicious served with sausages and gravy, leftover cold meats and salad or as part of a fried breakfast.

* Sri Lankan curry. If you've got leftover roast chicken or beef, make a curry. Fry an onion and a clove of garlic in oil, then add a teaspoon of each turmeric, cumin, ground coriander and grated ginger. Add a few chopped tomatoes, a cup of stock and a cup of coconut milk. Simmer for 20 minutes, throw in your leftover meat and simmer for a further five minutes.

* Frozen yoghurt. Add a spoonful of sugar to leftover yogurt and whisk until fluffy. Freeze for one hour, remove and whisk again. Repeat an hour later and throw in any leftover fruit. Freeze for a minimum of four hours before serving.

* Cheese fondue. We've all had chunks of hardening cheese sitting forlornly at the back of our fridge, right? Well use them up! Throw cheeses (Emmenthaler and Gruyère are best but mozzarella, goat's cheese, tasty or raclette work too) into a non-stick pan with a clove of garlic, a teaspoon of mustard and a cup of white wine. Simmer gently, stirring all the time, until melted and then dip in hunks of bread and leftover fruit and veg such as celery, apple, tomato and carrot.


Rida Shafqat