How do I reduce food waste this Christmas? 

How do I reduce food waste this Christmas? 

Every single year in the UK, 150,000 tonnes of food is dumped in our bins at Christmas. Over two million turkeys, five million Christmas puddings, and 74 million mince pies! For every meal you save, reduces methane emissions from landfills and lowers your carbon footprint. Here's some tips on where to start. 

Now the big day is over, you may be left with plenty of food that you don’t know what to do with. DON’T visit the bin in a desperate attempt to de-clutter the fridge. There’s plenty of quirky ways to get the most of your leftovers - or to help out others. 

Let’s start with those veggies

It can be hard buying the right amount of veggies - especially from supermarkets which don’t offer loose fruit and veg, so you may now be wondering what to do with those sprouts every time you open the fridge. 

Our absolute favourite is using Christmas dinner leftovers to make Bubble and Squeak (we actually think this meal is better than Christmas Day) with leftover trimmings and homemade onion gravy. 

Soup is a super waste warrior

Throw in those leftovers to create some exciting combinations: parsnip, apple and chestnut, Stilton, sherry, & onion and spicy root veg. They are all great for batch cooking and can be kept in the freezer as a nice winter warmer. A few other recipes from our blog which could help include:

🍴Refried beans with vegetable leftovers

🍴Red cabbage steaks

🍴Baked blueberry, banana, pecan, and courgette oats

🍴Parsnip, carrot and potato hash

🍴 Vegan nut roast

Keep peels for gravy!

Your vegetable peels can be used to create some delicious gravy. Simply pop your peelings into a large saucepan, cover with plenty of water and simmer up over a day to create a delicious, hearty stock you can use as the base for veggie gravy. You can even freeze them to make up fresh stock another day. 

Cheer up your neighbours

If you’ve got some leftover food that you’re just not in the mood for, why not box them up with a lovely note and drop them off to a neighbour - especially if you’re aware that they've spent Christmas alone. Your thought and surprise gift could completely transform their day. 

Donate to a local food bank

Another helpful place to send your cartons of brandy custard and boxes of mince pies is to donate them to your local food bank. You can also check beforehand if there's anything else they need as you may also have that gathering dust at the back of your cupboards too. 


Compost your scraps

For the unavoidable scraps, compost your food at home. You’ll be rewarded with fresh, nutritious compost in the following year for all of your new plants and ‘grow your own’ plans. 

We hope these ideas and recipes will help save some of your food going to waste. For every meal you save, reduces methane emissions from landfills and lowers your carbon footprint. It also conserves energy and resources, preventing pollution involved in the growing, manufacturing and transporting of your food.