Strategic Planning for Those Holiday Food Leftovers…

Are you still stuffed from those Thankgiving leftovers? (Considering my family decided to host Thanksgiving fashionably late, I’m still in a food-coma.)

“Tis the season for parties and mountains of food… which equals lots of excess waste.   Between Thanksgiving and New Years Day, our food waste triples in the United States.  What can you do to cut back this statistic for the holiday season?

1. Donate extra ingredients to local charities like Philabundance – they take a variety of food products under these specific guidelines.

2. Plan ahead when hosting. Love Food Hate Waste has a convenient portion planner so you have just enough food.

3. Worried about not feeding guests enough? Try having some fresh fruit or veggie platters that you can enjoy leftovers.

4. Create a shopping list when hitting the grocery store – It will help you avoid impulse buys or too much quantity.

5. Choose products that have minimal packaging to reduce waste – or at least packing that you can recycle.

6. When you unpack from the grocery store trip, make sure to put new products behind older ones. For example, pushing that new box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch behind your half-eaten Cheerios will ensure you finish the old box before diving into the new one.

7. Purchase smaller plates so people have to make more trips – avoiding people taking more than they can eat.

8. Offer food buffet style – this way guests can choose what they want on (and what they can leave off) their plates

9. Compost food scraps where you can – eggshells, fruit & veggie peels, etc.

10. Have leftovers? Create new meals with old ingredients – using tools like Whole Foods, My Recipes & Supercook to suggest recipes. Enjoy 2-3 new dishes with the same core products!

Posted by Julie

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Julie Hancher is Editor-in-Chief of Green Philly, sharing her expertise of all things sustainable in the city of brotherly love. She enjoys long walks in the park with local beer and greening her travels, cooking & cat, Sir Floofus Drake. View all posts by Julie Hancher