If planning meals for the whole week seems overwhelming to you, try sitting down and planning 3 days at a time. After all, how are you suppose to know on Monday what you’ll want to eat on Friday? Limiting your planning to a few days at a time will also encourage more frequent grocery store visits which in itself has been shown to reduce household food waste.

If you are tech savvy, perhaps try out some of meal planning websites or mobile apps to keep you motivated and organized. For those who prefer something a little simpler, try a dry erase board on your fridge or even an old fashioned pen and paper will do, too.

Plan fruits and veggies use wisely

We have all done it. Tempted by the bright and beautiful fruits and veggies in the produce aisle, we load up our basket without a plan to use it all. And what happens? Some of those once beautiful fruits and veggies get wilted, soft or fuzzy and they end up in the garbage.

Planning your fruit and veggie consumption (as well as any other ingredient that will spoil faster) by it’s perishability is also key to reducing household food waste. Plan your meals around the fruits and veggies that go bad first, like leafy greens, saving the heartier ones, like cabbage and root vegetables for later. Don’t be afraid to plan meals using frozen vegetables, either. The freezing process is quite good for preserving the nutritional quality of produce and they will last forever (well almost!) in your freezer. Check out www.stilltasty.com a detailed guide of the shelf life of different food products.