Halo
How to stop wasting food at home: know what's in your fridge
Most food waste happens at home, mostly because we forget what we have. Five habits that help, and how a pantry app makes them automatic.
In the EU, around 130 kg of food per person is thrown away every year, and more than half of that happens at home, not in shops or restaurants (Eurostat). The usual reason isn't carelessness. It's forgetting: the yogurt behind the milk, the second bag of spinach, the mince that was meant for Tuesday.
Five habits that actually help
1. Know what you have before you shop
Most duplicate buys happen in the shop, when you can't remember if there's still milk at home. A list of what's in your kitchen on your phone answers that in a second.
2. Eat the oldest first
Put new food behind old food, and plan the next meals around whatever runs out soonest.
3. Learn the two dates
"Use by" means don't eat it after that day. "Best before" is about quality, and plenty of food is fine after it. Treating every date as "use by" throws away good food.
4. Freeze in time
Bread, mince, cooked rice and leftovers freeze well. Freeze them before the date, not on it.
5. Look at what you throw away
If the same thing keeps going in the bin, buy less of it or a smaller pack. Seeing it in numbers makes the pattern obvious.
How Halo makes this automatic
All five habits need the same thing: knowing what's in your kitchen without writing it down. Halo fills that in from your grocery receipt, sorts it into cupboard, fridge and freezer, and shows a "this week" strip with what to eat first. When something is almost gone it can go on your shopping list, and when you throw something away Halo counts it, so you can see the money it cost.
Questions
How much food does a household throw away?
In the EU about 130 kg of food per person is wasted each year, and more than half of it comes from households, according to Eurostat.
Is 'best before' the same as 'use by'?
No. 'Use by' is about safety: don't eat it after that date. 'Best before' is about quality: the food is often fine for a while after, if it looks, smells and tastes normal.