Posted on by Joy Scrogum

Tools to help reduce food waste this holiday season

Close up of plate of food including a turkey leg, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes and greens.
Photo by Fred Zwicky, © 2024 Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

It’s the fall and winter holiday season, and the downside of upcoming festivities is the amount of waste they entail, especially food waste. When we waste food, we also waste the resources that went into its production (e.g., water, land, energy, labor, etc.), and contribute to the generation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, such as methane. Wasted food causes 58% of methane emissions from municipal solid waste landfills (U.S. EPA, 2023). Wasted food also means wasted money; according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the cost of food waste for each U.S. consumer is approximately $728 per year, or an average of $56 per week for a family of four. With increasing prices for groceries, it’s even more important that prevent food waste whenever possible.

The following tools and resources will help you reduce food waste associated with your holiday celebrations and hopefully help you establish new habits to prevent food waste year-round. As always, please keep in mind that links to specific products or services are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute endorsement by ISTC, the Prairie Research Institute, or the University of Illinois.

Meal planning

  • The Guest-imator from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Save the Food website is an interactive calculator to help determine the right amount of food to prepare for a party. You can enter the number of guests based on whether they’re light, average, or big eaters, and even factor in how many leftover meals you’d like when the party’s over. That’s great if you’re the type of person who likes to cook extra food for holiday gatherings so you can send home care packages of leftovers with your guests. You can then choose the style of meal (vegetarian, classic dinner party, or a little of everything smorgasbord), input details on the types of entrees, sides, and desserts you want to get measurements such as the number of pounds of meat to prepare, the ounces of veggies to cook for sides, the number of pies to makes, etc. based on the parameters you’ve entered. Note that for whatever reason, clicking on “Finalize the menu” button does nothing (regardless of the browser you’re using); however, once you’re at the point to add or subtract mains, sides, and desserts, the measurements you’ll need will update on the table graphic at the top of the page with each addition or subtraction. Just scroll back up to see the new information.
  • Utah State University Extension—Meal Planning. This website guides you through the process of assessing what you already have in your pantry, thinking about your meals for the week, and creating a grocery list. It also includes free printable templates for planning nutritious meals and creating relevant shopping lists, and describes free meal planning apps for your phone to make planning simpler.

Proper storage & food safety

  • Store It. A key strategy for preventing food waste is storing your ingredients and leftovers properly to keep them viable for as long as possible. This section of the NRDC Save the Food website provides information on how to store a wide variety of foods, including when and how to refrigerate, how to freeze, and tips for using up the last bits of a given ingredient.
  • FoodSafety.gov (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services). In particular, check out the Cold Food Storage Chart and the FoodKeeper App to learn about proper storage of different foods and ingredients. The FoodKeeper App is also available for Android and Apple mobile devices. Further, this website provides resources for keeping food safe by event and season. Following these guidelines can help prevent food waste caused by improper preparation or storage practices. Explore the downloadable guides for cooking for groups, guidance for parties and buffets, Thanksgiving and Winter Holidays, and more.
  • Oregon State University Extension Service Home Food Preservation. Scroll through this website for a wealth of guidance on freezing, drying, pickling, canning, and more to preserve ingredients and various foods prepared at home (since holiday meals often generate leftovers).

Get creative

Sometimes the best strategy to prevent food waste is to find inspiration on how to use an ingredient in a new way, use up a surplus of a given item, or repurpose leftovers in a new dish. The following websites and tools will help you create meals based on what you have on hand.

The 5 Ways website suggests using canned beans as a substitute for half of the fats in baked goods like brownies and cookies to use them up and add protein to treats. Photo by Andrei Starostin – – stock.adobe.com (Education license, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign).
  • 5 Ways With Commonly Wasted Foods. This section of Canada’s Love Food Hate Waste website allows you explore new options for using various ingredients. Images of items are presented with a list of 5 different uses. Click on any image for details, which include links to specific recipes. You can also explore the “Recipes” section of the website to search for items you have on hand that might not be featured on the “5 Ways” page.
  • Food Hero. Another excellent resource from Oregon State University Extension, this site provides a database of recipes, resources to help celebrate the food of different cultures, gardening tips, and other guidance to support a healthy lifestyle. You can search their resources by ingredient to find recipes, videos, and other inspiration for items in your pantry or fridge.
  • Of course, you can always just perform an Internet search for your available ingredients, but you might be overwhelmed by the number of search results. Check out these additional recipe database sites to help you find what you’re looking for more easily. Many of these are also available as apps for your phone.
    • Supercook. Use the dropdown menus to select multiple ingredients at a time.
    • MyFridgeFood. If you’re a creative chef, this site not only allows you to search for recipes based on what you have, but also to submit recipe ideas to assist others.
    • Cookpad. Similarly, you can search and share your own recipes. You can search without creating a free account, but need one to submit recipes.
    • Cookin’ With Google. This is a Google Customized Search engine that lets you input multiple ingredients and find relevant recipes.
    • Use Up Leftovers. Enter three ingredients and get results from a database of over a million recipes. Don’t worry about being overwhelmed; the results will consist of the five best matches from the database.

Happy holidays and good luck whittling down your food waste!

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