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Food & Drink

Be a food waste warrior at home

BaxterStorey

Posted 3 weeks ago

Tue 21 Apr, 2026 12:04 AM

Tips for reducing waste from BaxterStorey experts

Did you know? If food waste were a country, it would be the third biggest emitter of carbon emissions after the US and China!

Not only is food waste an important part of saving the planet, but it's also a major way to save cash too. The secret? Prevention from the very start. Here is how to keep your fridge fresh and your wallet full:

Beating waste from the checkout 🛒

The easiest way to deal with waste is to never create it. Before you even grab your grocery bags, it's a good idea to have a plan:

Do an audit: check what's hiding at the back of the fridge and in the cupboard before you go.
Meal plan: make a list of what meals you would like to eat for the week, and write out the exact ingredients you need - nothing more. Never meal planned before? Here's our ultimate guide to effective meal planning.
Stick to the list: write a list of exactly what you need for the week and stick to it.
Don't shop hungry: when you're walking down the aisles on an empty stomach, you're much more likely to impulse buy and spend more money than necessary.

Struggle to remember the steps to take?

Once food is in the fridge 🫑

So, you’ve done the shop and brought the goods home. Now, the goal is to stop the clock. Here's some important hacks to help your food last longer.

Use by: this is all about safety, and is the most important date to remember. Never eat, cook or freeze food after the use-by date as it can make you very ill.

⭐️ Pro tip: you can eat food until midnight on the use-by date shown on a product, but not after, unless the food has been cooked or frozen.

Best before: this is all about quality and not safety. After the best before date, the food is safe to eat but might not be at its best.

Use this guide to find more on food dates.

Has your food gone past the best before date? Check if it's alright to eat using your senses. For example:

Look for visible mould on bread
Taste biscuits or crisps to see if they're stale
Smell your dairy products to see if they have soured

🔔 Important: Even if your food smells fine after its use-by date, you should NOT eat it, as it may not be safe.

Don't undermine the power of knowing how to properly store your food either:

Your fridge should be set between 0 and 5°C.
Keep chilled food out of the fridge for the shortest time possible during preparation (a maximum of four hours) and cool your cooked food at room temperature and chill within 1-2 hours.
Eat leftovers within 48 hours or freeze them if you think this won’t be possible.

See our suggestions on how to store specific ingredients properly.

Your freezer should be around -18ºC.
You can freeze food up until midnight on the 'use by' date printed on the packaging.
Cool any warm meals before putting them in your freezer.

⭐️ Pro tip: Always label the food you freeze so you don't end up with Unidentified Frozen Objects (UFOs).

Defrost your food in the fridge so that it doesn't get too warm and is safe to eat.
Make sure your food is fully defrosted and that the middle is fully thawed.
Always use defrosted food within 24 hours after it has fully defrosted.

How to rescue your waste 🧑‍🍳

Sometimes, a bit of food waste can't be helped, but you can still avoid more waste at this point.

1. If you have cooked too much

Make the most of the freezer by batching the rest into containers or freezer bags, host a flat dinner or offer it to others in your building.

2. If you have leftover ingredients or trimmings

Turn your leftovers into a new delicious dish - one-pot fried rice, bubble and squeak and banana bread.

3. If you can't be bothered to cook

Eat at your closest canteen where we manage the food waste for you, or - when we do have surplus - take advantage of the 50% discount on unsold food at the end of service. Don't forget to use handy food-saving or sharing apps like Olio and Too Good To Go too!