如何减少食物浪费

如何减少食物浪费

Food waste is a huge problem in the United States. The good news: Each of us can help solve it.

食物浪费在美国是个大问题。好消息是:我们每个人都可以帮助解决这个问题。

Consider this: A typical household of four tosses out about $1.600 worth of food annually. Up to 40% of the food that's produced never makes it to our mouths, and all this waste is enough to fill the highest skyscraper in Chicago 44 times a year, according to an estimate by the Department of Agriculture. Meanwhile, 1 in 8 Americans struggle with food scarcity.

想想看:一个典型的四口之家每年要扔掉价值1600美元的食物。根据农业部的估计，高达40%的食物都没有送到我们的嘴里，而所有这些垃圾一年就足以填满芝加哥最高的摩天大楼44次。与此同时，八分之一的美国人在与食物短缺作斗争。

Our discarded food often ends up in landfills, where it rots and then starts to emit methane — a greenhouse gas far more potent than carbon dioxide. A recent report from the United Nations panel on climate change estimates food waste accounts for as much as 10% of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions.

我们丢弃的食物经常被扔进垃圾填埋场，在那里腐烂，然后开始释放甲烷——一种比二氧化碳强得多的温室气体。联合国气候变化专门委员会最近发布的一份报告估计，人类产生的温室气体排放中，有10%来自食品浪费。

While many environmentally friendly practices — say, buying an electric car or installing solar panels — require an upfront investment, you can start saving immediately once you put in place these tips to reduce food waste.

虽然许多环保措施——比如购买一辆电动汽车或安装太阳能电池板——需要前期投资，但一旦你落实了这些建议，就可以立即开始节约，以减少食物浪费。

Here are five simple ways to start reducing your food waste at home today.

这里有五个简单的方法来减少你今天在家里浪费的食物。

1.    Make a plan

做个计划

Before you shop for groceries, think about exactly what you need for the week, make a list — and then stick to it.

在你买杂货之前，想想你这一周到底需要什么，列个清单，然后按清单买。

Because let's be honest, many of us are "aspirational shoppers" — we throw things in the cart that sound good or look novel, and then we let them sit in the back of the fridge for a few weeks.

因为说实话，我们很多人都是“有抱负的购物者”——我们把听起来不错或看起来很新奇的东西扔进购物车，然后让它们在冰箱里放几个星期。

When food does go bad, take stock: What are you already buying too much of? What are you always throwing away?

当食物变质时，盘点一下:你已经买得太多的是什么?你总是扔掉什么?

Just the act of adding up what you let go to waste can help change the way you think about your food. Then you can use that information to be a more conscious consumer during your next trip to the grocery store.

只是把你浪费掉的食物加起来，就能改变你对食物的看法。然后，你可以利用这些信息，在下次去杂货店的时候成为一个更有意识的消费者。

2.    Get creative with repurposing food

创造性地利用食物

Before walking straight to the trash with your soggy spinach or old carrots, ask yourself: Can I make this into something new?

在你拿着湿漉漉的菠菜或老胡萝卜直接走向垃圾桶之前，问问自己:我能把它变成新的东西吗?

According to chef and restaurant owner Tiffany Derry, the answer is probably yes. Derry says, you don't need to follow any complicated recipes to turn older produce into a fresh new dish. (But if you want to try one, here's a sweet recipe for your overripe avocados).

厨师兼餐厅老板蒂芙尼·德里表示，答案可能是肯定的。德里说，你不需要遵循任何复杂的食谱来把旧的农产品变成一道菜。(但如果你想尝一尝，这里有一份甜的食谱，可以搭配熟过头的牛油果)。

Here are some of her favorite hacks for wilted greens:

以下是她最喜欢的一些对付枯萎的蔬菜的方法:

Saute them with some of your favorite spices — she suggests a little bit of onion and garlic. Throw them in for some flavor in a soup or a sauce.  Putting mildly wilted greens in ice water may help perk them up.

用你最喜欢的香料炒一下——她建议加点洋葱和大蒜。把它们放入汤或酱汁中调味。把稍微有点枯萎的绿色植物放到冰水里可能会让它们新鲜起来。

3. Your freezer is your friend

你的冰箱就是你的朋友

If you realize that you won't be able to use food before it's too late, turn to the trusty freezer.

如果你意识到你不能在太迟之前使用食物，转向可靠的冰箱。

"No one would throw away anything that had a two hundred dollar value to it," says Katherine Miller, vice president of impact at the James Beard Foundation. "I mean, think about all the things, all the time that we spend trying to find lost things because they have value to us."

“没有人会扔掉任何价值200美元的东西，”詹姆斯·比尔德基金会负责影响力的副总裁凯瑟琳·米勒说。“我的意思是，想想所有的事情，我们花费所有的时间去寻找丢失的东西，因为它们对我们有价值。”

Did you know you can freeze almost anything? Your bread, your grains, your fruits, your veggies — even your milk!

你知道你可以冷冻几乎任何东西吗?你的面包，你的谷物，你的水果，你的蔬菜，甚至你的牛奶!