Reducing food waste
If we all stopped wasting food, the impact on reducing our carbon emissions would be the equivalent to taking one in five cars off the road!
There are three ways to prevent food waste going to landfill:
Compost you food waste at home
Reduce the amount of food waste you produce
Recycle your food waste
Food waste can be recycled using the green bins provided for kitchen and garden waste. This is a free, weekly collection service. Using the green bins for kitchen and garden waste residents can recycle all types of cooked and uncooked food including:
- meat and fish (except meat bones and carcasses)
- fruit and vegetables
- pasta, rice, bread, noodles
- leftover meals
- tea bags and coffee grounds
- eggs and eggshells
- dairy products
- leftover cakes, sweets or desserts
Food waste can be placed into the green bin loose or in compostable bags bearing the seedling logo (see right.) These bags can be purchased in large branches of supermarkets and in some local shops.
The food and garden waste is taken to the in-vessel composting facility in Edmonton where it is turned into quality compost for use in London parks and agriculture.
To order your green bin, please contact the Customer Care Unit;
- Tel: 020 8359 4600
- Email: first.contact@barnet.gov.uk
Compost your food waste at home
The council subsidises compost bins and wormeries for residents so that residents can compost their food waste at home. For more information, visit our composting page.
Save £50 per month by reducing food waste
A third of what is being thrown away by households in Barnet is food waste. Food waste is the most abundant material in the Barnet refuse bins. The average household throws away between £420 and £600 worth of good food which could have been eaten each year. There are also environmental impacts. Most of the food thrown away ends up in landfill where it produces methane, a highly potent greenhouse gas.
We asked residents in the High Barnet area to share the little things that they do to make the most of the food they buy. Here are a few of them:
- Cut stale bread into cubes and fry for croutons.
- Potatoes, greens, carrots and leftovers. Mix and fry for bubble and squeak.
- Whatever delicious meal you cook in the evening, take the left-overs to work for lunch the next day and make your work-mates jealous and curious.
- Use bruised or brown fruit to make smoothies or milkshakes.
- Make sure you eat the oldest yoghurt next.
- Always ensure the oldest bottle of milk is the most accessible in the fridge!
- Yorkshire puddings with a twist – pour batter over leftovers and bake it in a hot oven.
- When making muffins, add ‘tired’ fruit.
- Over ripe bananas can be made into banana cake.
- Put stuff in the freezer.
- Make breadcrumbs out of stale or waste bread and freeze them.
- Leftover cooked vegetables can go into an omelette. Fresh veg past its best can go into a stir-fry.
- Make soup from leftover vegetables and chicken.
- Make up recipes from your leftovers – experiment.
Five ways to save money and prevent food waste:
1) Get friendly with your fridge
Just by opening the fridge door and checking the ‘use by’ dates on items you can prioritise what to eat first.
2) Cupboard savvy
Stocking your store cupboard and freezer with a variety of canned, dried and frozen goods with a long shelf-life means you will always have the ingredients standing by to jazz up your leftovers.
3) Carb control
Learn how to make just enough rice and pasta for the number of people you’re cooking for.
4) Love your leftovers
Being creative with your food is the clever way to save cash. With a little bit of thought you can create some delicious surprises from your leftovers - they don’t have to mean second best.
5) It pays to plan!
Check your fridge, freezer and store cupboard before you go shopping, then write a list so you don’t shop for things you already have.
For more handy tips and delicious recipes to make from your leftovers, visit the Love Food Hate Waste website.
Email this pageLast modified by: Rachel Jones on 29/11/2011