BORDERERS are being urged to cut down on the amount of food they waste by buying seasonally and locally, writes Sally Gillespie.
Leading Scottish chef Martin Wishart called on local householders to do their bit to save the planet – and their money – at the launch of the Love Food Hate Waste's Summer Berries campaign.
The Michelin star chef said: "The average Scottish househ
old throws away a staggering £410 per year on food that could have been eaten, simply because we forget to use it or cook too much.
"With a little extra planning, people could make significant savings on their food bills and put that money towards a summer holiday.
"The Scottish Borders has a fantastic larder of local and seasonal food. Food tastes so much better when it's in season. At this time of year, berries in particular are bursting with flavour, really good for you and so versatile."
The campaign will focus on four key areas to help reduce food waste – planning and preparation, storing food, recipe ideas and portioning.
Figures show more than 14,000 tonnes of food is thrown away every year in the Borders. Recent research found Scottish householders throw away around a third of the food they buy – the equivalent of one bag of shopping in every three – and claims less than one fifth of food waste is truly unavoidable.
Environment secretary Richard Lochhead added: "Food makes up nearly 20 per cent of the average household bin.
"If we all stopped wasting so much food, we could save around 1.6million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions – the equivalent of taking one in four cars off the road.
"The Scottish Government is committed to recycling 70 per cent of waste by 2025 and tackling food waste is a key part of the action we are taking to achieve a Zero Waste Scotland."
Some of the campaign's suggestions are to plan weekly menus, follow food storage instructions, rotate food in fridges, freezers and cupboards to see what needs used first, freeze leftovers or make them into another meal, buy loose fruit and veg so you only get what you need, look out for smaller size options like half loaves of bread and measure portion sizes.
The campaign's Dr Nicki Souter commented: "We're trying to increase awareness of what's in season throughout the year.
"Our website www.wasteaware lovefood.org.uk offers simple and practical advice on how to make the most of the food that you buy and avoid food waste."
On the site, Borderers are encouraged to share their recipes, hints and tips.
Love Food Hate Waste is a nationwide initiative by Waste Aware Scotland and has the backing of leading Scottish chefs, including Nick Nairn, Tom Kitchin, Lady Claire Macdonald and Mr Wishart.
The full article contains 466 words and appears in Southern Reporter newspaper.
