Newham Council is supporting Food Waste Action Week, March 1-7, as part of its commitment to reducing waste, tackling climate change and creating a better and more sustainable environment.
The inaugural Food Waste Action Week, which is led by WRAP, the UK’s leading sustainability charity, brings together organisations from retailers to local authorities, restaurants to manufacturers, and beyond.
Wasted food contributes 8–10% of total man-made greenhouse gas emissions, and roughly one third of food produced around the world is lost or wasted.
Across the UK, 81% of people are concerned about climate change, however, only 37% think wasting food is contributing to climate change. In fact 30% of manmade global CO2e greenhouse gases are created from the production and consumption of food and wasted food accounts for more global greenhouse gas emissions than flying.
Cllr James Asser, Cabinet member for the Environment, Highways and Sustainable Transport, said: “Newham Council is committed to reducing waste and improving recycling rates help improve our environment. As part of creating a better and more sustainable environment, the council has developed a comprehensive approach to moving towards a ‘circular economy’, reducing the production of waste and increasing rates of reuse and recycling.
“We know that about half of what goes in a Newham rubbish bin is food and around half of that food could have avoided ending up in the bin. By following some simple food planning and storage tips, managing portion sizes and using up any leftovers, people can make a big difference in the amount of food that gets thrown away. Reducing food waste is good for the environment, reduce the borough’s costs for removing waste and very importantly also benefits residents by cutting their weekly food bill.
“We are asking residents to play their part and help reduce the amount of food waste to both make Newham a more sustainable place and reduce their shopping bills by taking part in Food Waste Action Week Challenge to make sure no edible food ends up in the bin.”
Throughout 2020 the Council has been sharing top tips for avoiding food waste on their @NewhamRecycles social media pages, through online workshops and through “anti-food waste” cooking courses run by our partner Nutrition Kitchen, a not for profit organisation based in East Ham. Residents have undertaken seven week cooking courses run online, with a new recipe each week aimed at tackling food waste and supporting each other on a community WhatsApp group.
Here are some of the top tips for reducing food waste from our residents who took part in the courses:
Ali, an ‘anti-food waste cooking graduate’, said: “Be creative about using leftovers. I would never would have thought of putting left over roast potatoes in a burger.” Our ‘Cook Along ’session inspired Ali to try using leftovers this way and she said it tastes fabulous.
Rashida’s top tip to reduce food waste is to “plan weekly meals, then go shopping for the ingredients”. Rashida started doing this as an easy way to save money.
Jaini shared with us a simple tip: “Freeze fresh herbs into ice cube trays so they can be used when needed.” It preserves their intense flavour for months to come. Stop wasting your herbs and save money. It is so simple”.
Tasneem’s advice is to “always plan prior to cooking and make sure the portions are just enough to serve however many people you are feeding and not too much more, unless you are going to freeze it for later or eat it in the next few days.
“Prepare and serve the right amount, every mealtime. This minimises food waste by only buying, preparing, cooking and serving what you know you will eat keeps the pounds in your pocket”.
For more information on Food Waste Action Week, visit https://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/FoodWasteActionWeek