Spoiler alert - Council on board with Eat Me First
Published on 24 April 2024
Despite Kiwi's concerns about the cost of food increasing year-on-year, we are still throwing away 157,389 tonnes of food from households every year. That’s enough to feed 337,744 people. That’s nearly 16 times the population of Waitaki!
Recognising that food waste is as much a problem in Waitaki as it is in the rest of New Zealand, Council’s Waste Free Waitaki team are supporting the Love Food Hate Waste “Eat Me First“ campaign, supplying free reusable stickers to help local households eat food that needs to be used up first in their fridge, to prevent unnecessary food waste and save money.
Waitaki District Council’s Waste Minimisation Officer Lucianne White says "Food waste is an issue we can't ignore any longer, not only for the impact on our wallets, but also the impact on our environment. We'd love to see our community get behind this initiative to address food waste and start thinking about about the bigger picture of food loss and waste and how we can all make a difference by making small changes."
From Wednesday 24 April to Friday 31 May there will be local collection points to get free “Eat Me First” Reusable Stickers at:
- Waitaki District Council HQ – 20 Thames Street
- Waitaki Resource Recovery Park
- Ōamaru Public Library
Or residents can email wastefreewaitaki@waitaki.govt.nz and we can organise to getting some to you.
More about the Eat Me First Campaign:
Love Food Hate Waste NZ Launches Aotearoa’s Sticky Solution to Food Waste
Food going off before it can be finished and before ‘use by’ and ‘best before dates’ are the top reasons for food waste with bread, leftovers and fruit and vegetables listed as the top three most wasted items.
Working towards a goal of reducing household food waste by 50% by 2030, Love Food Hate Waste NZ has launched its sticky solution to save money and food; Reusable Eat Me First Stickers.
“Helping Kiwis to identify what food needs to be eaten first, our reusable Eat Me First Stickers should be placed on a shelf in your fridge or pantry to highlight what items need to be eaten before they go mouldy or have to be thrown out,” says Love Food Hate Waste NZ’s Juno Scott-Kelly.
“At its core, the Eat Me First Reusable stickers seek to instil a culture of mindfulness and conscientiousness when it comes to food consumption and storage in Kiwi households,” she adds.
By actively identifying and consuming items that are closest to expiration, have been leftover from another meal or opened and left uneaten, individuals could save upwards of $1,510 a year according to Love Food Hate Waste NZ.
“With food price inflation hitting a rate that has not been seen in 30 years in the middle of 2023, we know Kiwi families are hurting the most when it comes to their grocery bills,” says Juno.
“The reusable Eat Me First Sticker has been designed to help reduce the cost & waste from the food we purchase.”
“Not only will reducing food waste benefit the environment as we decrease methane emissions from landfills, but it would save New Zealanders around $3.2 billion a year, Juno concludes.”
Available for free from the 22nd of April until the 31st of May 2024, Kiwis can order their Eat Me First Stickers from the Love Food Hate Waste NZ website or pick them up from local collection points and in selected Woolworths stores around the country while stocks last.
In addition to the free Eat Me First reusable stickers, Kiwis can also learn simple hacks and tricks to make the most of their food by keeping up with Love Food Hate Waste NZ on social media and through events happening around the country in the month of May.
Food Waste Facts:
- More than $543 million worth of fruit, vegetables and meat from Kiwi households every year.
- $62 Million worth of bread from Kiwi households every year
- $290 million worth of fruit and vegetables from Kiwi households every year
- 191 million worth of meat from Kiwi households every year
Find out more here: www.lovefoodhatewaste.co.nz/eat-me-first