On average, every Swede throws away 1,330 kroner worth of edible food every year, according to the Swedish Food Agency’s compilation,
The authority has combined data from the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, the Swedish Food Agency’s food basket survey, analyzes of household waste and price data from grocery stores.
For a family of four, it will be approximately SEK 5,300 per year. Just what is thrown in the wastebasket corresponds to around 140 meals, the Swedish Food Agency’s calculation shows.
– Throwing away food is throwing away money. You can stop through more knowledge about food and it’s not really something you need to give up, says Karin Fritz, food waste expert at the Swedish Food Agency.
Fruit, vegetables and bread
Fruit, vegetables and bread are the foods that are most often thrown away unnecessarily. Meat and fish also account for a large part of the waste, according to the Swedish Food Agency.
– Knowledge of how long food lasts that you cook yourself is quite low. Many people think it’s a matter of a few days, but you can keep it for up to a week if it’s cold in the fridge, says Karin Fritz.
The items we wash the most, simply pour out, are coffee, tea but also dairy products.
According to Karin Fritz, there are some tricks to reduce wastage. The first thing is to make sure that the temperature in the fridge is at four degrees. Food lasts longer in a cold fridge.
The second is about planning and knowing what you already have at home.
The third is to understand the date marking and see the difference between best before or last use by date.
– Best before means that the producer guarantees that the food has certain characteristics – appearance, smell and taste – but after that the quality can change but it is not about safety, Look, smell and taste.
Eating discarded food
The journalist and author Andreas Jakobsson has made food waste a lifestyle. He engages in so-called dumpstering – taking care of things that others have thrown away.
It started when he went with a friend eleven years ago.
– I expected rotten tomatoes and brown bananas, but 90 percent of the food was fine.
Dumpstring is in a legal gray area. According to Andreas Jakobsson, it has never been tried legally when someone took food from an open garbage can.
Hear him tell more in the clip.