Are you tired of trash? In our house, we sure were; especially around holiday times when the trash bin seemed close to over-filled. Many homes already recycle plastics, metals and paper(though we can all do better it seems). The problem for many households is the perception of extra effort to reduce waste. One area that’s becoming increasingly easier to reduce waste though, is the compostable stuff like food scraps, paper products and more. If you are curious but not yet sure about how to make this part of your household, read on!

Daily FOOD WASTE

As the parent of a toddler, I am keenly aware of the pieces of toast that get left unfinished, or remains of dinner that wouldn’t be wise for the parents to finish (dessert is a different story!). In addition to these, things like coffee grounds and filters, napkins, vegetable cuttings, bones and more routinely go into the trash, but they don’t HAVE to. With some forethought, you would be surprised how much your trash bag can shrink!

FIRST STEPS

The easiest first step is to work to reduce waste. Don’t buy too much food – Americans waste 150,000 TONS of food daily (equal to 1 lb per person) according to the US Dept of Agriculture! That’s real money you may be throwing out, so reducing waste makes financial sense as well. Some other ways to curb food/organics waste at home are: Continue reading…