How to rotate food and eliminate waste

Photo by Roberto41144

Living frugal is at an all time high, and more than ever it is important to not waste anything. Ironically the kitchen is often a place where waste occurs. How many times have you had to throw out food because it spoiled somewhere in the rear of the refrigerator where it remained out of sight?
You can prevent the spoiling of food by adhering to some simple advice concerning the proper preservation, and storage of food in your home.

• Once a month take an inventory of items in the pantry. Rotate the items with the oldest date to the front of the shelves when you get the groceries home. Try to use a logical system when rotating items for yourself. Store dry goods, canned goods, beverages etc. on separate shelves.
  


• Always place sugar rice, cornmeal, pasta and other dry goods in sealed containers rather than their original bags or boxes.
  


• Keep a list of items in need inside of the pantry, making it easy to prepare your weekly shopping list.
  


• Crackers and cookies, cereals and snack food, must be tossed out from time to time when they become stale. Staleness takes place when opened packages are not resealed properly. By purchasing plastic or glass storage containers (Wal-Mart) it’s possible to keep items fresh. Items such as mayonnaise, applesauce, pickles, and others come to mind, Many others can be kept in glass jars that can be washed, and reused for smaller items like raisins, granola, nuts etc.
  


• Once a week, take an inventory of the items in your refrigerator to be certain nothing goes missing there.
  


• Keep the items with the oldest expiration date at or near the front so that they get used before they expire.
  


• Store leftover food in clear plastic containers for easy identification.
  


• Store food items according to their individual temperature requirements.
  
  Crispers-
  There is a reason why refrigerators come with crispers, meat drawers, and other miscellaneous sections. Buy extra meat when it goes on sale and when repackaging for freezer placement, be certain to date/label the packages, and rotate the items placing the oldest to the front, the same as your refrigerator and pantry items are.
  


• If you keep fruit out on the countertop, inspect it closely before ingesting it and always eat the ripest one in the bunch first, and if they ripen too quickly (pears, apples etc.) cook them. Cooking fruits makes them last longer and prevents waste.
  


• Always take advantage of markdown items, and buy them in bulk. Keeping organized is the secret to having what you need when you need it most.
  
  Like this article?