Throwing food or other trash in the trash can puts it out of sight and, for the most part, out of mind. Here are some intriguing details on Irish home waste: The average Irish household discards approximately one ton of trash per year. This weighs about the same as a compact vehicle and is completely garbage-free. That indicates that we discard enough trash annually to fill 1.6 million tiny vehicles. At the moment, we recycle slightly more than half of this. This implies that each family continues to dump half a ton of trash (the equivalent of 800,000 tiny automobiles) into landfills each year. Nearly 40% of the garbage sent to landfills is organic waste, primarily food waste. Different recyclable materials make up the remaining 30%. Therefore, we could reduce the quantity of trash going to landfills by at least 50% if we were able to prevent part of this food waste from getting to landfills, in addition to recycling more and composting at home. In Ireland, it translates to 400,000 fewer automobiles’ worth of waste being dumped in landfills each year!
Return to school
Return to school It’s time to go back to school! The shoes have been shined, a new sweater has been purchased, and the books are all nicely packed. For all the young kids in our lives, the next school year will be incredibly exciting as they return to their familiar classroom setting with friends. The refrigerator is stocked, and the lunchboxes are ready for back to school. Everyone wants their children to have a wholesome lunch at school. You can save money and ensure that your kids are eating well and remaining fed and attentive by preventing food waste.
Here are some helpful and easy tips to ensure lunches don’t end up being thrown in the trash!
- Planning is crucial.
- Bring the kids in
- Keep a record of your meals—and your abstentions!
- Getting the most out of leftovers
- Adapt meals to the schedule at school
Planning is crucial.
It’s important to prepare the food you’ll be bringing in advance if you want your week’s lunches to be nutritious. You may be “lunch ready” for the next week by spending just a little time organizing on the weekends. If it’s a beloved yogurt or a certain kind of fruit, purchase exactly the correct amount where feasible. Consider the lunches you’ll prepare and how many of a particular item you need to buy. Plan your grocery list correctly and take into account the portion proportions. You can also purchase meals in bulk that have a long shelf life and portion out just the correct quantity for your child. Individual rice cakes or biscuits, for instance, can be preferable to small packets, and a handful of raisins would be better consumed whole than a box. Bulk purchases are frequently less expensive.
Bring the kids in
Children who cook their own meals are more likely to consume the food they have produced. You may provide alternative lunch selections for smaller children, and your teenagers can add their own list of lunch items to the main shopping list.
Keep a record of your meals—and your abstentions!
A wonderful method to learn about your child’s lunch preferences and whether they are bored with particular dishes is to keep track of lunches that are left uneaten or just partially consumed. Ask your children what foods they don’t enjoy as much or if there is anything new they would want to try at the end of each week. This will enable you to plan their lunches for the coming week and guarantee their continued nutrition. Also, if anything is returned partially eaten, inquire as to whether there was too much of it. You might only need to cut back on your portion amounts.
Getting the most out of leftovers
You may save money by packing lunch the next day with the leftovers from supper as a nice substitute for a sandwich! While stew leftovers can be heated in thermal containers, meal leftovers like spaghetti, noodles, tortillas, etc. are best enjoyed at room temperature. A cheap thermal container may ensure that your children have a nice and healthy lunch at school.
Adapt meals to the schedule at school
By tailoring lunches to the daily schedule at school, you can ensure that your kid has enough time to eat during breaks, play, and avoid throwing away the beautifully prepared food! Consider the size of the portion and the amount of time they have to consume it. Fruit that is pre-cut or smaller in size requires less time to consume and reduces waste.
These easy instructions can encourage your youngster to have a substantial lunch and save you money, both of which are advantages, especially at this time of year! Now is the perfect moment to establish these routines in order to save time and money in 2022 and 2023 as we begin a brand-new, exciting term!
