Love food, hate waste, reduce emissions
According to Love Food Hate Waste, a food saver campaign which 60 New Zealand councils run, New Zealand homes throw away 157,398 tonnes of food per year, all of which could have been eaten. This is enough food to feed the whole of Dunedin for nearly three years, and costs the average household $644 a year.
New Zealand’s yearly food waste produces 409,234 tonnes of carbon emissions, as much as 137,511 Ford Ranger cars. In high-income economies like NZ, up to 35 percent of food is thrown out by consumers. In low-income economies, however, relatively little is wasted at the household level.
Unsurprisingly, reducing food waste is the third most efficient solution to reduce CO2 emissions and thus global warming and climate change. It's one of the few low-hanging fruit (pun intended), and a solution that is simple and cheap enough to allow all of us to make a contribution, without having to invest first.
Best way to use leftovers?
I'm sure you've got some excess ham at home or cold roast potatoes.
What are some of your favourite ways to use leftover food from Christmas day? Share below.
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