Food waste accounts for 8 to 10% of global greenhouse gases. Prevention starts with a few steps.

Make perishable goods visible.
(Photo by G. Travato, Unsplash)

At-home food waste is a hidden contributor to climate change, and while some waste is a part of life, most adults can take simple steps to tackle the problem beginning today, writes Alexandra Frost of The Atlantic. "Every step of the modern food-production process generates greenhouse gases. . . . As food rots in landfills and open dumps, it emits methane, a greenhouse gas much more potent than carbon dioxide. According to the United Nations, food loss and waste account for about 8 to 10% of global greenhouse-gas emissions."

Step one, before shopping, take a quick inventory, and if you're short on time, take a photo of your refrigerator and pantry. Once you're at the store, keep in mind what is realistic. Frost writes, "Sustainability consultant Ashlee Piper recommends shopping not for your 'aspirational life' but for the one you are actually living: If, realistically, you're never going to make your own pasta or pack gourmet lunches for your kids, don't shop for those meals."

Step two, once home from the market, put highly perishable, fresh food in the most visible places. Julia Rockwell, a San Francisco mom and sustainability expert, "recommends an 'Eat Me' station, whether it's a basket, a bowl, a tray, or a section of the refrigerator, which she says is especially helpful for teenagers, inclined as they are to 'go full claws into the fridge.'" Frost adds. "And whatever you're feeding your kids, experts repeatedly told me, you should probably be feeding them less. How many blueberries does your pickiest kid really eat at the breakfast table?"

Step three, cleaning and organizing your refrigerator can help your sanity and the planet. "If you're cleaning out your fridge and pantry strictly according to expiration dates, stop: If a food is past its expiration date but looks and smells fine, it probably is; most of the time, expiration dates are an indicator of quality, not safety," Frost explains. "Deli meats and unpasteurized cheeses are notable exceptions. . . . Brush up on the language of food packaging — 'best by' is just a suggestion, while 'expiration' is the date the manufacturer has decided when quality will begin to decline."

Step four, give your family some grace -- don't give up because, once again, you face black bananas at the back of the refrigerator. It's a process. Frost adds, "I want my kids to understand that our food comes from somewhere and that not eating it has consequences. That doesn’t mean guilting them for not liking dragon fruit, or demanding that they clean their plate at every meal, or scaring them about climate change. It’s more like bringing them along, helping them participate in a family project with planetary implications."