On the subject of saying ‘no!’ to over-consumption, did you know that food waste gets transported to land fills or dumps which are then covered up and allowed to decompose naturally? During the decomposition process, a variety of gases are released into the atmosphere including methane - a major greenhouse gas.The fuel used to transport the tons of food wasted at home and by restaurants to the various land fills also contributes to the carbon dioxide and sulphur emissions into the environment.

Various studies have shown that a lot of the food that we waste is still in the ‘use by’ date period and that the most commonly wasted food items are potatoes, bakery goods, grapes, apples, lettuce, pasta, rice and condiments. The studies also suggest that a lot of the waste is avoidable.

Better planning of meals, making shopping lists and sticking to them, avoiding the ‘eyes bigger than stomach’ syndrome when ordering ready to eat food such as fresh fruits, vegetables and restaurant/takeaway meals, checking what foods have been sitting in your fridge that could be made into a new recipe, and freezing dishes that you realise you have made too much of; are all simple ways to reduce daily or weekly food waste.

Please note that if you eat food that you do not need in order to get rid of extra food on your plate or in your kitchen, it is also a waste as it will simply be stored in your fat cells (like garbage bags full of fat). Join me in making the planet a healthier place in 2010!