Brisbane's top three most wasted foods

The top three foods that Brisbane residents throw in their general waste bin are:

Bread
Meat
Salad greens.

Save your food by following these top tips.

1. Bread

Bread is the most commonly wasted food in Brisbane's general waste bins (red lids), making up 19 tonnes per year. That's enough to fill 270 wheelie bins. Yikes!

The most common reasons for throwing bread away include the bread has become stale or mouldy.

Save bread and money by using the tips below.

Prevent

Check before you shop. Check your fridge, freezer and pantry to see how much bread you have before you shop.
Work out how much bread you need. How much do you need for your family?
Write a shopping list. Write down how much bread you need and take you list to the shops.
Buy a half loaf. They are perfect for smaller households or a mid-week top up.
Choose sourdough bread. It has longer shelf life and is more resistant to mould than other bread types.
Store bread to make it last. Keep bread for up to two days at room temperature, then slice and freeze the remaining loaf. Bread can be kept in the freezer for more than three months.

Reuse

Make toast not waste. Toasted sandwiches can be made from stale or frozen bread.
Make chilled sandwiches for lunch by buttering frozen bread straight from the freezer and sandwich together with your favourite fillings. Your sandwich will be defrosted by lunch!
Make French toast with stale or frozen bread.
Make bread and butter pudding – a delicious way to use up stale bread.
Blend bread crusts and stale bread into breadcrumbs. Use in meatballs, as a meat or fish coating, or to top pasta.
Add some crunch with croutons.
Use your microwave. Rescue stale bread in the microwave by placing it in for 10 seconds.
More great ideas:
- Explore OzHarvest's Use it Up recipe cards.

Recycle

Feed stale bread to pets. If safe to do so, feed old bread to chickens or other pets. Check the RSPCA web guides on feeding animals.
Compost stale bread
- Apply for a compost rebate and recycle stale bread with a bokashi recycling system.
- Find a neighbour on ShareWaste to drop off your stale bread and other food scraps for recycling.
- If you live in the food waste recycling service pilot area and you have a green bin, put your stale or mouldy bead in your bin for composting.

2. Meat

Poultry, beef and pork make up the second most wasted food in Brisbane's general waste bins (red lid). Meat is expensive. Use these tips to make the most of your meat.

Prevent

Eat meat first. Plan your meat meals early in the week.
Only buy what you need. Purchase the right amount for the number of people eating at home.
Eat less meat. Swap one meal per week with a non-meat dish and use up your leftover vegetables.
Use your freezer. Freeze your leftovers for another meal. Put the date on the container and add the mal to next week's meal plan.
Store it right. Raw red meat and chicken can be stored in the fridge for three to five days. Cooked meat will keep in the fridge for five to seven days.

Reuse

Make pies and pasties. Turn leftovers into delicious pies and baked treats with Pampas Re-Pie-Cling recipes.
Create stir fries and salads. Cut any leftover steak into strips and use it in a stir fry. Any cooked meats can be added to salads, sandwiches, or wraps for lunches.
Make toast not waste. Make toasted sandwiches with leftover meat for a quick and easy lunch.
Make tasty stock or broth with meat bones or a poultry carcass.
Make meatballs by chopping up any leftover meat, adding breadcrumbs and spices and browning them in a pan.
For more great ideas, check out OzHarvest's Use It Up recipe cards for leftover love inspiration.

Recycle

Feed leftover meat to pets. If safe to do so, feed leftover beef or poultry to pets. Check the RSPCA web guides on feeding animals.
Compost meat with bokashi.
- Apply for a compost rebate and recycle beef or poultry with a bokashi recycling system.

3. Salad greens

Salad greens come in third place in the most wasted foods in Brisbane's general waste bins (red lid). Never let a green leaf get soggy again with these tips.

Prevent

Check before you shop. Look in your vegetable crisper and freezer to see what salad greens you have. Use these greens up in a salad or a pesto to go with future meals.
Write a shopping list. Write down what salad greens you need to buy and how much.
Keep herbs fresh. Basil and mint don't like the fridge. Keep them on your bench in a glass of water and use them in the first few days after shopping.
Buy loose salad greens rather than packaged (so you only buy what you need) and store correctly.
Eat fresh salad greens first and then frozen greens.
Buy local, in season and in supply.

Reuse

Prepare your fresh greens to use during the week. Blend baby spinach and pour into an ice tray. Use frozen spinach cubes in soups, pastas and smoothies.
Make a green pesto to add to meals during the week.
Use up leftover lettuce in a refreshing green soup.
Schedule a use-it-up day before your next shop.
Turn leftovers into salads (i.e. leftover salad greens, meat, vegetables).
Check what you have and use Google to search for a new recipe.
Use up extra spinach to make pasta sauce or a dip.

Recycle

Feed soggy salad greens to pets. If safe to do so, feed leftover beef or poultry to pets. Check the RSPCA web guides on feeding animals.
Compost soggy salad greens.
- Apply for a compost rebate and recycle stale bread with a bokashi recycling system.
- Find a neighbour on ShareWaste to drop off your stale bread and other food scraps for recycling.
- If you live in the food waste recycling service pilot area and you have a green bin, put your stale or mouldy bead in your bin for composting.

Brisbane's top three most wasted foods

1. Bread

2. Meat

3. Salad greens

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