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To wrap up our first week's focus on planning, we are going to discuss ways to keep track of the food you buy.
Start with what you have
One easy way to prevent wasted food is to be aware of what you have in your freezer, pantry, and refrigerator before you buy groceries.
Start tracking your inventory on paper or use digital tools.
Keep a written inventory inside a pantry door or on the outside of the refrigerator to see what you have at a glance. Free, printable resources to download include the use it up list on Hennepin County’s Fridge Check Guide (PDF) or inventory sheets from Shelf Cooking.
Go digital and try a food inventory app such as Cooklist, Pantry Check, Cozzo, or Foodkeeper. These apps let you keep mobile lists and include helpful perks like “use it up” reminders, shelf-life estimates, and item pricing.
Consider using your kitchen inventory to create a reverse grocery list, where you start with what you have to avoid buying duplicates.
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If you’re planning to focus on keeping track of the food you have, choose these actions in the planning category:
- Keep a food inventory
- Try a food tracking app
Remember to complete the food waste tracking survey by the end of the day on Friday, August 16. Everyone who submits their data and a reflection on what they could do differently to reduce food waste will be entered into a drawing to earn a prize.*
*Ramsey County and Washington County employees and their immediate relatives are not eligible to receive a prize.
Drop-In Food Scrap Dye with Textile Center
Saturday, August 10 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Dayton’s Bluff Mississippi Market, 740 East 7th Street, St Paul
At this free, drop-in event, use food scraps to create a unique design on a bandana or tea towel. Teachers will guide students through the dye process and steam your garment as you shop in the grocery store. On this event date, the market will have sampling from 4 local farmers, vendors, and other goodies throughout the store. Use the provided food scrap materials, or you can gather food scraps from home and bring them with you! This is an all-ages opportunity.
See the link for more information: In Person at East 7: Drop-In Food Scrap Dye with Textile Center - Mississippi Market Co-op (msmarket.coop)
Pickling Workshop
Tuesday, August 13 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Bloomington Public Works Training Room, 1700 West 98th Street, Bloomington
Join the City of Bloomington to learn more about food preservation and the refrigerator pickling process. Gain hands-on experience by bringing produce from home to pickle (think cucumbers, carrots, green beans, zucchini, cherry tomatoes, etc.). Each participant will be provided with two jars and the pickling solution at the workshop.
Register at here by August 9th.
Cooking with Food Scraps
Tuesday, August 13 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Dayton’s Bluff Mississippi Market, 740 East 7th Street, St Paul
Join Madeline Summers in the kitchen to turn leftovers and food scraps into something delicious. The demonstration will include corn stock and general stock-making tips, turning veggies scraps into baked goods and candied peels, some ideas for bean water, end-of-the-jar dressings, perpetual soup, and more!
Stop Food Waste Challenge tips
Check out the resources section for video tutorials on participating in the challenge and interacting with teams, as well as a media kit and social media resources for sharing with others.
Edit your actions and settings, rally your team, and mark actions complete on your personal dashboard.
Engaging with the challenge platform and completing actions gets you points. Visit the participants page to check your ranking and compete against friends. For a complete guide on how to gain points, visit the points page.
We would like to send a big thank our amazing partner organizations for helping us spread the word and recruit participants for this challenge!
Wednesday, July 31: Tips for getting started with the challenge
Thursday, August 1: The challenge starts today!
Monday, August 5: Get to know what you throw
Wednesday, August 7: Meal planning to waste less and save more
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