It's the same story every week. You come home from the grocery store holding bags filled to the brim with fresh groceries, but within a few days they're wilted and withering and you have to toss them into the compost bin or the trash.
The unintentional waste is depressing, and so is its financial consequences. An estimated a total of 470 pounds of food per year are wasted by American families, costing each family about $600 a year. According to the study, one-fourth of all produce purchased by Americans is thrown away, and the main reason for its waste is that it spoiled too quickly.
Although everyone has their own storage methods inside the fridge, it is important to know which foods should be kept apart from each other. Apricots, avocados, bananas, cantaloupes, honeydew melons, kiwis, mangoes, nectarines, papayas, peaches, pears, plums, and tomatoes all produce ethylene, which can cause other fruits to become spotted and soft. Those foods include apples, broccoli, carrots, cucumbers, eggplants, green beans, lettuces and other greens, potatoes, summer squash, and watermelons.
We put together a guide on how to store a few times that always seem to go bad quickly:
- Avocados - Keep on a countertop at room temperature. To extend their life, put them in the fridge, unbagged.
- Bananas - Keep on a counter, unbagged. Do not keep unripe bananas in a fridge. The cold makes the skin turn brown.
- Grapes - Store in a resealable plastic bag in the fridge.
- Spinach - Store in a plastic bag and refrigerate.
Other tips include:
- Keep a sharp eye out for mold, which can spread quickly and contaminate everything near it.
- Avoid cutting into your produce for as long as possible, as it begins to spoil as soon as soon as it is pulled apart.
- Keep potatoes, onions, winter squash and garlic out of the fridge and in a cool, dark, dry cabinet.
- Avoid storing food in an airtight bag. Suffocating produce will speed up its decay.
With a few small changes everyone can stop wasting food and start saving money, instead!
Source: BecauseAction.com
