Did you know how much food waste you throw away daily? Food waste makes up about half of the average 1.5kg of waste that each Singaporean household throws away daily. 

When food is wasted, all the resources used to produce it – such as water, land, energy and labour – are also wasted. In addition, food waste that ends up in landfills contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and leads to climate change. In fact, more than half of this waste can be prevented. 

Mr Derek Ong, who co-founded non-profit group Food Rescue Sengkang, said: "A lot of food is wasted because people buy too much canned food or do not know how to store bread properly. Bread can last up to six months if you put it in the freezer.”

Mr Derek Ong founded Food Rescue Sengkang with his wife in 2019, to help residents save money on groceries and to put discarded food to good use.

He also shared some practical tips on how to reduce food waste:

Plan your meals and shopping

Create a shopping list based on planned meals to avoid over-buying. This will reduce the risk of perishable items going bad before you can use them.

Store food properly

To keep food fresh for longer, use airtight containers and store in the right part of the fridge. Use the "first in, first out" method to ensure that older items are used before newer ones. As weevils do not affect the safety of the rice, there is no need to throw the rice away. Instead, you can rinse it and cook it as normal. You can also add a clove of garlic and store the rice in a cool, dry area to extend its shelf life.

Use your senses to check food

Use your three senses – sight, smell and taste – when handling food that is past its “best before” date. If the food passes the three-senses test, it is likely that the food can still be consumed without significant health problems.

Ugly is the new beautiful

Instead of discarding ugly fruit, you can cut off the rotten part of the fruit and eat it. There are also cases where choosing an ugly fruit can actually be better for our health. For example, bananas with black spots are the most nutritious, while bananas without spots actually contain more sugar. In addition, vegetables with slightly yellow leaves can still be eaten by removing the yellow leaves.

Use leftovers creatively

To avoid throwing away leftovers, try repurposing them into new meals. For example, you can make soup from leftover vegetables or fried rice from leftover rice. Running out of cooking ideas? Simply Google it and you’ll find lots of cool recipes to try.

Compost food waste

If you have food scraps, such as fruit peels, that you cannot eat, consider composting them. Composting not only reduces waste, but also creates nutrient-rich soil for plants.

Support food rescue initiatives

Food Rescue Sengkang volunteers distribute 15 to 30 tonnes of rescued food to residents every Saturday.

Donate excess food to help reduce food waste and support the community. Ground-up initiatives such as Food Rescue Sengkang and Food Rescue Project collect ugly but edible fruit and vegetables, canned food and bread that would otherwise be discarded and redistribute it to those in need. These efforts not only help offset the high cost of living, but also help alleviate food insecurity and contribute to a more sustainable food system by diverting edible food from landfills.

[Chinese]

七个小贴士助你减少食物浪费：准备购物清单，避免过度采购；妥善保存食物，延长其保鲜期；通过视觉、嗅觉和味觉判断食物是否安全食用；看起来不太美观的蔬果，很多时候只要切掉腐烂的部分或变色的菜叶，仍可安全食用；发挥创意，善用剩余食材烹煮新料理；把食物残渣转化为营养丰富的堆肥；以及捐赠多余食品，让有需要的家庭受惠。

[Malay]

Petua bagi mengurangkan sisa makanan: Rancang perbelanjaan anda untuk mengelakkan pembelian berlebihan; simpan makanan dengan betul untuk memastikan makanan segar lebih lama; lihat, bau dan rasa untuk periksa makanan; buah-buahan dan sayuran yang tidak elok masih boleh dimakan jika anda buang bahagian buah yang busuk atau sayur yang kuning; gunakan baki makanan untuk membuat hidangan yang baru; jadikan sisa makanan sebagai kompos bagi menghasilkan tanah yang kaya dengan nutrien tumbuh-tumbuhan; dan dermakan makanan berlebihan.

[Tamil]

உணவுக் கழிவைக் குறைக்க சில குறிப்புகள்: அளவுக்கதிகமாக வாங்குவதைத் தவிர்க்க திட்டமிட்டு வாங்குங்கள்; உணவுப்பொருள் கூடுதல் காலத்திற்குக் கெட்டுப்போகாதிருக்க சரியான முறையில் பத்திரப்படுத்தி வைத்திருங்கள்; உணவின் தோற்றம், வாடை, சுவை மூலம் அது நன்றாக இருக்கிறதா என்பதைச் சரிபாருங்கள்; பழமும் காய்கறிகளும் பார்ப்பதற்கு அழகாக இல்லாவிட்டாலும் பழத்தின் அழுகிய பகுதியை அல்லது கீரையின் பழுத்த இலைகளை அகற்றிவிட்டுச் சாப்பிடலாம்; மீதப்பட்ட உணவுப்பொருள்களைப் பயன்படுத்தி புதிய உணவுகளைச் சமைத்திடுங்கள்; உணவுக் கழிவை மக்கவைத்து, செடிகளுக்கு ஊட்டமளிக்கும் மண்ணை உருவாக்குங்கள்; மிகையான உணவை தானம் செய்யுங்கள்.

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