7 clever products that can help reduce food waste
Throwaway less food, extend the life of your grocery shop and dispose of waste eco-consciously with these smart gadget ideas for your kitchen.
Image: Lakeland
Did you know that 50,544 tonnes of food is wasted every festive season? If you’re looking to reduce the amount of food waste your kitchen produces, there are some best practices to follow, but there are also some clever gadgets to make the process easier.
From smart appliances to simple, yet ingenious ideas, here are 7 products that can help improve your kitchen’s eco-credentials.
Vacuum sealers
Vacuum sealing food can make your produce last up to 5 times longer compared to simply popping them in a bag or cling film. This handy handheld Foodsaver vacuum sealer doesn’t take up too much cupboard space, and can be used to seal compatible food bags and containers.
Inventory fridges
Image: Samsung
One way to reduce the amount of food waste is to use an inventory system. You can do this by using scanning food as you put it into the fridge, and keep tracks on what you have to use, as well as their expiration dates.
You can find these inventory systems on phone apps and in refridgerators with built-in smart technology, such as the Samsung Family Hub. If the whole inventory system is too much commitment to keep up, this refridgerator also has a remote camera, meaning you can check in on what you have left in the fridge when you’re out shopping in the supermarket.
Smart ovens
Image: Hoover
We’ve got to admit, this is a new one for us, but Hoover’s KEEPHEAT oven has a clever system for helping batch cooked meals last longer. Once cooked, rather than sealing up and popping in the fridge for the week, the oven has a special function that keeps it running at a precise heat. The food is then to be kept in the oven, constantly heated, and meals can last for up to 2 weeks stored in this way. Another benefit is that the meals are always heated and ready to eat!
Kitchen compost bins
Image: Joseph Joseph
Kitchen composter caddies are a great way to encourage better behaviours in the kitchen when disposing of compostable materials. Where council-provided caddies might be a little smelly, designs like this Joseph Joseph composting caddy allows air to ventilate, while also including a filter to trap odours.
De-clutter consciously
Image: Ocado
Place these Fruit and Veg savers in the fridge, storage boxes or your fruit bowl to help double or even triple the life of your fruit and vegetables. They work by absorbing Ethylene gas – a substance that is present in the air, but is the same thing that bananas give off which ripens other nearby fruits and vegetables.
Herb keepers
Image: John Lewis & Partners
Supermarket herb pots are often notoriously short-lived, but this Cole & Mason herb keeper pot uses a self-watering system to ensure that the herbs get as much water as necessary, but not too much, to help them last longer.
Compost coffee grounds
Image: Scoof
This clever tool from Scoof has been designed to help you clean out cafetieres and French presses of coffee grounds. These make for great composting materials, but they are often just poured down the sink out of ease!
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