Buying groceries correctly: tips and secrets

Every time the holiday season comes, crowds of people flock to supermarkets to buy food.

At the same time, according to statistics, a family of four throws away half a kilogram of spoiled food every day. Over the course of a year, this amount is about 200 kilograms, which is quite an impressive figure.

If we add to this the food products that the retail industry throws away every day, the situation becomes completely uncontrollable.

How can you organize the purchase and storage of food products to minimize losses?

Main reasons

According to a study conducted by regulatory authorities, people most often throw away food products for the following reasons:

• natural spoilage;
• improper storage;
• the product was purchased expired or its quality was too low;
• too much food was prepared;
• too much food was bought;
• a spontaneous purchase in the complete absence of need for the product.

Most often, bread ends up in the trash bin, which makes up a significant portion of the average Russian's diet. Next come vegetables and meat (including semi-finished products).

The list is closed by dairy and fermented milk products, as well as ready-made meals that are sold in most supermarkets.

Awareness of the problem

There is no point in constantly thinking about the undernourished inhabitants of the entire globe and lamenting about it. But this does not mean that you should close your eyes to the problem, because, as the saying goes, “if you want to change the world, start with yourself.”

In addition, reasonable planning of food purchases and proper storage can save the family budget quite a bit. For a family of four, we are talking about 10-15 thousand, which is not so little.

Some simple ways to save money

There are 10 simple rules, following which you can save quite a lot on food. Here they are:

• You should never shop on an empty stomach. In this state, a subconscious desire arises to buy a larger package or to buy loose goods "with a reserve";
• It is always worth paying attention to the expiration date of a particular product, especially for perishable products;
• you need to plan your diet in such a way that what was bought earlier is eaten earlier;
• you need to learn how to properly sort food inside the refrigerator. It is better to store meat and fish on the lower shelves, and eggs and milk on the middle and upper shelves. Fresh vegetables and fruits are best stored in a specially designated drawer (most manufacturers label it with the inscription FreshBox);
• Anything that is clearly left over for "the next day" should be refrigerated as soon as possible, as this slows down the growth of bacteria involved in the spoilage process.

We previously wrote about how to protect your home while on vacation.