Do you want to be more environmentally conscious this Christmas?
Waste management company Biffa estimates that UK householders produce 30% more waste during the Christmas period, and as consumers, it is our duty to become more sustainable with our waste.
We know it can be hard at this time of the year to watch our spending and buying habits so we have put together a Zero Waste Christmas guide to help you reduce your waste during the festive period. In this post, we’re talking about Christmas food and encouraging you to reduce your Christmas food waste.
Christmas is typically a time for indulgence and treating yourself, your family and friends. However, UK consumers are often guilty of over-catering which results in a huge amount of Christmas food waste. It is estimated that a staggering 270,000 tonnes of food will be wasted over Christmas, including 74 million mince pies.
To avoid wasting food and your money, plan ahead for your Christmas food shopping. If you do end up with leftover food, donโt just bin it. Transforming leftovers can be a fun way to create new meals and cut your food waste. BBC Good Foodโs guide to using up your Christmas leftovers is a great way to creatively use up leftovers and reduce your Christmas food waste.
If you have perfectly good food that you are unable to use, you can advertise what you have with OLIO. The app connects neighbours with each other and with local businesses so surplus food can be shared, not thrown away, reducing your Christmas food waste. This could be food nearing its sell-by date in local stores, spare home-grown vegetables, bread from your baker, or the groceries in your fridge when you go away. For your convenience, OLIO can also be used for non-food household items too. Download the app today as it is great to use all year round.
If you have food that cannot be reused, always either place it in your food waste recycling bin (if your local authority provides this service) or on your compost heap.
Read our other Zero Waste Christmas Guide blogs for more inspiration on how to be more environmentally conscious this Christmas, including DIY Christmas trees and greeting cards, wrapping alternatives and DIY Christmas decorations.
