Thanksgiving 2019: THESE are the easy ways to AVOID food wastage during a Thanksgiving feast

Thanksgiving is all about feasting to your heart’s content. The table is always overflowing with turkey, scrumptious side dishes, delicious appetizers, finger licking desserts and lip smacking potluck food items that the guests always bring along with themselves. While an overflowing table sure is a treat to the eyes, a lot of it also ends up in our trash cans. Discarded food does not only burn a hole in our pockets but also contributes to overflowing landfills and wastage of food which could have been used to feed those less fortunate than ourselves. If extra food from a Thanksgiving meal has always been a source of worry for you, we know of a few easy ways that will help you manage unnecessary wastage of food this year onwards!

1. Shop smart

Don’t head to the grocery store without being absolutely sure of your Thanksgiving menu. We tend to shop more when we are clueless about what we need. Prepare the menu days ahead so you know exactly what you need. This will save you time and keeping you from making unwanted purchases when you go shopping.

2. Store food properly

Being stranded with leftovers after a Thanksgiving meal is nothing unusual. This has one particular perk. If stored properly, you can eat the leftover food for the next few days. Learn how to freeze, pickle and can leftover food items so that they remain edible even a few days later.

3. Go homemade

Ordering in food for Thanksgiving is an easy way to escape cooking for a large crowd. Unfortunately this convenience can add to food wastage. Restaurant foods, frozen foods and packaged food items have a very short shelf life and tend to spoil after a few hours of coming in contact with open air. They tend to spoil faster and it becomes difficult to consume them later. 

4. Keep a check on your serving size

Just because it’s the holiday season, doesn’t mean you have to overfeed your guests. Ask your guests how much serving they would like before serving them. Don’t force serve them if they would rather prefer smaller portions. This is a great way to reduce wastage and also keeps overeating in check. 

5. Compost the throwaways

No matter how careful you are, you are bound to end up with some wasted food. Instead of throwing the food out in the next day’s trash, turn it into compost. This will fertilise your garden and effectively reduce your carbon footprint.