Food Waste Prevention and 
​Resource Recovery

Food waste happens at all stages of the food system. From extra food growing in a farmer's field that doesn't make it to market to the food we throw away at home when cooking dinner. When looking at all waste across all parts of the food system, almost 40% of food is wasted at some point in the process. A lot of the waste happens at home where people end up not using all of the food they purchase or bring home. We can work on food waste prevention and resource recovery (donating food to food pantries) at all parts of our local food system. Learn more below about food waste in each part of the food system and how we can work to prevent food waste and encourage food resource recovery.

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Growing and Producing Food

Food waste on the farm or garden occur when someone growers or produces more food than they can eat or sell. For produce farmers this may also include "ugly" produce that doesn't meet the standards for the marketplace. Some ways to reduce waste at this part of the food system include donation of extra or "ugly" produce to food pantries, feeding produce that can't be eaten by people to animals, and composting produce and food scraps.

Transforming Foods for Storage & Market

Food preservation is a way to prevent food waste. By using the different methods of food preservation people can enjoy foods long after they have been harvested. Some methods of food preservation include freezing, drying, canning, making jams and jellies, pickling, and dehydrating. Although food transformation works to prevent food waste by increasing the storage life of the product, there is still food waste that occurs. Composting and donating food to the food pantries are ways to reduce food waste and encourage resource recovery.

Marketing and Distributing Food

Marketing can be used to reduce food waste or encourage resource recovery in all parts of the food system. For example, some grocery stores have developed marketing campaigns around "ugly" produce to encourage shoppers to purchase produce that might look slightly different. Marketing can also be used to educate about the benefits of composting or teach people about how much it costs to throw away food at home. Distribution of food can help to make sure it doesn't get wasted and is delivered to people who need it before it can no longer be consumed. 

Getting and Preparing Food

Most people purchase the majority of their food at grocery stores. Food waste happens at this part of the food system when people purchase food they do not eat. Some ideas to help prevent food waste include meal planning and shopping with a list so you only purchase the food that you need, and paying attention to expiration dates so food will be consumed before it goes bad. When preparing meals, make only the amount of food your family will eat. Get creative with what's in your fridge, make a meal out of what you have before it goes bad. Additionally, food scraps can be composted. Unopened foods can be donated to food pantries as long as they meet the food safety guidelines of the food pantries. Individuals and businesses (like restaurants, medical centers, schools, and other places that prepare meals) can donate to food pantries. 

Eating Nutritious Foods

Eating food is something we all do multiple times a day. Sometimes food is left over at the end of a meal. When possible, food can be saved for a later meal. It is important to follow all food safely guidelines when storing prepared foods. Instead of throwing away food at the end of the meal, most of the food can be composted. In addition, if you go out to eat a meal, consider ordering only the amount of food you can eat. If you can't eat everything you have ordered, take home your leftovers for another meal. This helps to prevent food waste and stretches out the money spent on a meal.

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When we all work together to prevent food waste and encourage resource recovery at all parts of the food system we can make a difference in the amount of food wasted. Learning to waste less food at home helps stretch our food budgets.