Read about the food, cardboard and garden waste service
Food waste in East Riding
All households across the East Riding can now put food waste into their brown bin, so that it can be sent for composting.
In November 2011, a random sample of green bins in the East Riding showed that up to 23 per cent of what was inside was food waste, and of that 23 per cent, nearly half of it could have been home composted.
This means that families across the East Riding have been throwing away up to £50 a month in wasted food. Think of all that wasted money!
The council’s campaign to minimise the amount of food waste includes tips on cutting down on what is thrown away; recipes for leftover food; how to shop smarter; and examples of how local households have managed to cut their waste and save money.
Tips include:
• Plan menus for the week.
• Write a shopping list but first check what you have in cupboards, fridge and freezer so you buy only what you need
• Do not be tempted by ‘buy one get one free’ deals and other offers which look good value but very often end up being thrown away when they are not used in time
• Make more use of fridges and freezers to keep food fresh for longer. This also includes cooked food and prepared meals
• Food can be eaten right up to a ‘sell-by’ date. Freeze it, if possible, to keep it longer.
• ‘Best before’ dates are for quality, so there's no need to throw out food on that date. Eggs are the exception - always stick to the date.
• Get creative with leftovers to save money.
Some recipes from the waste and recycling officers:
Christmas pudding strudel
Spicy turkey casserole
Leftover vegetable soup
Bread and butter pudding
Anything goes quesadilla
Visit the council's smarter shopping guide.
Visit www.lovefoodhatewaste.com for recipes to use up your leftovers and for information on getting the most out of your freezer. There is a portion calculator to avoid cooking too much and a menu planner and shopping list templates, which can be downloaded.
Some interesting figures:
East Riding:
A random sample of East Riding green bins in January 2011 showed:
• 27% of the waste in the bins is food
• 75% of the food waste could have been home composted
• Around 7% of it was thrown away in an unopened or unused condition.
UK:
• Total amount of food\drink wasted annually by UK households is about 8.3m tonnes
• 8.3m tonnes a year represents 22% of food and drink brought into the home
• 5.3m tonnes of this food and drink is avoidable – it could have been used up through better planning, purchasing, storage or preparation
• Households with children generate on average 450 kg of food\drink waste annually worth about £680
• Households without children generated an average of 320 kg of food\drink waste a year at a cost of £470.
Food waste family challenge – Case Study
The East Riding’s food waste family are Sharon Scotter of Driffield, her partner, Gareth Atkins, and their two children Libby and toddler Ben.
They won the council’s food waste challenge in autumn 2010. The prize included a day with top chef Nigel Brown at his school in Barton upon Humber.
The challenge, an annual event open to all East Riding residents, aims to highlight the amount of food waste going to landfill after being put in the green bins.
Sharon said: “The whole experience has been amazing, from learning cooking tips with Nigel through to working with the council’s waste recycling officers.
“It has made me conscious of how easy it is to slip into wasteful habits without being aware of it. Everyone is keen to save money these days and one of the easiest ways is for us all to reduce the amount of food we throw away.”
Sharon added: “I have found that it has also made Libby more interested in cooking and preparing food, which has led her to try a range of different foods.”
