Every year, 21 kg of food waste per capita is considered avoidable, as reported by the UNEP in 2024. This staggering statistic can feel intimidating, leaving students feeling helpless in addressing such a widespread issue. However, meaningful change can begin within your home. The average Canadian household contributes to 79 kg of food waste annually, highlighting an opportunity for students to make a measurable impact through their everyday choices.
Why it Matters
Reducing food waste has many benefits. In 2012, the Food and Agriculture Organization highlighted that food waste is a major contributor to the climate crisis; thus, reducing food waste can actively decrease the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into our atmosphere.
We can also redirect food waste towards supporting food-insecure populations. By reducing food waste, we can provide relief to individuals in need by donating excess food to food banks, shelters, and community programs that accept donations.
On an individual level, reducing food waste can promote more mindful eating habits by encouraging people to be intentional about their food choices, such as planning what and how much to consume, as demonstrated by research done by Monash University and the George Institute. Ultimately, these practices can lead to greater appreciation for food, smarter shopping decisions, and improved portion control through mindful habits.
Overall, reducing food waste is a key part of achieving many of the United Nations' sustainable development goals. Reducing waste presents positive actions that are actively targeting SDG 13 climate action, SDG 12 ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns, SDG 3 good health and well-being, and SDG 2 zero hunger, established by the United Nations. Campus-wide, a reduction in food waste would bring us closer to our Climate Action Plan 2030 goals to reduce 50% greenhouse gas emissions within UBC food systems.
Getting Started
If you are just starting your journey in reducing food waste, there are so many tips and tricks out there. Here are 5 of my favourite tips to start your contribution to reducing household food waste:
- A Grocery Store Game Plan
This can manifest in various ways, but some key points are to know the inventory of ingredients and foods at home. Then, before you go to the store, make a grocery list so you know exactly what you need, and you can prevent buying excess you don't need and will likely forget and waste down the road.
- Learn Proper Storage Practices - Use your freezer!
How many times have you opened your fridge to wilted celery? You can actually preserve that crunch by chopping and storing your celery pieces submerged in water and storing them in the refrigerator. There are so many storage tips for produce online and using these techniques can help extend the life of your produce which can ultimately reduce food waste!
This method extends to freezing foods. Your freezer is your best friend! Learn proper freezer techniques, which can help you save time and food waste if you batch prep ingredients or meals such as soups.
- FIFO
This is a simple technique called “First In, First Out” where you use up the “older” ingredient before opening the “new” ingredient. For example, if I buy a container of Greek yogurt and put it in my fridge, I will use up the last bit of Greek yogurt from the container I bought 5 days ago before opening the new container, meaning the first container IN my fridge, is the first container to be taken OUT of my fridge. This will help reduce food waste by promoting using all of the Greek yogurt in the first batch before opening the new batch and forgetting the older one in the back of the fridge until it is spoiled and cannot be consumed anymore.
- Eat the Peels
Instead of peeling your carrots and potatoes, try giving them a good scrub and keeping the peel on! Peels are also rich in fibre and micronutrients, so it’s a win-win situation.
It’s important to do a bit of research to see which peels are edible and which are not. For example, kiwi peels are actually 100% edible, and the skin actually contains a much higher proportion of fibre content than the flesh, as demonstrated by this article on Plant Food For Human Nutrition. If eating peels is not your thing, you can keep lots of your veggie peels to make vegetable stock for soup!
- Compost!
Sometimes it’s hard to find another purpose for inedible rinds, or foods that were hiding in the back of the fridge for a little too long. This is a perfect opportunity to practice composting. There are different ways to compost, so it may take a quick search to figure out what works best for you. This reduces food waste by reducing landfill contributions and promoting nutrient-dense soil.
There are so so so many more tips out there, but these are 5 starter tricks I thought a beginner could adopt fairly easily. If you’re already a master of these and are looking for more ideas, we got you covered!
Taking it the Extra Mile
These next 3 ideas may require a bit more time and planning, but will provide you with more options to reduce food waste in unique ways!
- Learn Preservation Techniques
Pickling and fermenting can be a fun way to use up the rest of your cucumber or onion! This process is a bit more time-consuming and will require some research, but it can extend the shelf life of some of your ingredients.
- Meal Prep
Meal prepping goes hand in hand with shopping smart at the grocery store. The actual meal prep goes a little further and requires some preparation, but in the end, can result in less food waste because meals are planned, portions are predetermined, and there is less likely to be waste at each meal. This can also lead to healthier eating habits due to the increased mindfulness of meal prepping.
- Start an At-Home Garden
An at-home garden is a brilliant way to learn to appreciate your produce. This appreciation can manifest in more mindful consumption of your foods, and combining methods such as composting and proper storage can flourish when you have an at-home garden. You can store your extra produce, and your compost can contribute to the healthy soil that helps to grow your produce.
Takeaway
Global food waste can feel like a huge and intimidating problem, but the good news is that it doesn’t have to be tackled all at once (or perfectly). As students with busy schedules, small, realistic changes in your everyday routine can add up to a meaningful impact over time. Whether it’s planning your grocery trips, freezing leftovers, eating the peels, or composting what you can’t use, every effort counts. These small everyday habits can all contribute to climate action and UBC’s sustainability goals on campus and beyond. Reducing food waste is not about perfection; it's about making progress, even in the smallest ways.
