When people think about greenhouse gas emissions, the perceived culprits that often come to mind are large corporations and things like air travel. There is no denying that the fossil fuel sector is the largest contributor to climate change, but some of the other sectors are not as high as one might think. Air travel makes up one per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Food waste makes up 10 per cent; and that is something that each individual can do something about.
“Reducing food waste is the fastest, easiest and most economical way to reduce the impact of greenhouse gas emissions on rising temperatures,” Sarah Soteroff, senior PR manager for US and Canada at Too Good To Go, told CityNews. “And we waste food everyday, multiple times per day.”
Too Good To Go is an app that connects businesses to consumers to sell food that didn’t sell during regular course of business at discount rates to reduce food waste. The company recently released data on holiday meal habits and food-saving strategies across Canada.
The holidays are one of the most expensive time of year for Canadians. On top of buying gifts for loved ones, food bills reach into the thousands of dollars to create elaborate meals for friends and family.
“We want people to come and have five side dishes whereas on a regular day you might only have one,” Soteroff said.
While food is an important part of celebrations for many, Soteroff cautions Canadians to make sure they are making sustainable choices when planning for leftovers.
The survey results show that 83 per cent of Ottawa residents say they typically throw away food after a big holiday meal, a figure that has increased from last year.
In Canada, around 46 per cent of all food produced ends up in landfills, greater than the global average of 40 per cent.
But there are solutions to limit that waste. Soteroff recommends inviting friends and family to bring Tupperware with them to share leftovers, use leftovers to concoct new dishes, and shop your own fridge and pantry before buying any new food.
“It’s just about taking one extra step or thinking about the food you already have,” she said.
The most commonly thrown away foods are baked goods and produce because people always want what is freshest. But when these ingredients are being used to make something else, it is often satisfactory to buy day old bread or slightly marked up produce.
“We always want to have more food on hand. We always want to have the prettiest apples, the no bruised bananas and things like that, but we’re seeing a bigger bigger push towards buy only that one avocado as opposed to five, buy the ugly banana, but the bruised fruit if you’re going to put it in something else,” Soteroff said. “It doesn’t always have to be perfect.”
Doing so will also help bear the financial burden of the increasing costs of food. While food inflation has started to slow in the last couple of months, data from Statistics Canada shows that grocery prices rose 21.4 per cent between April 2021 and April 2024. Year over year, holiday meals are costing more. Too Good To Go’s survey concludes that Ottawans expect to spend individually an average of $131 on holiday meals this year.
Meanwhile, data from Second Harvest shows that Canadians waste $3,800 worth of food waste per year.
The bright side, Soteroff said, is people are coming around to understanding the implications of food waste and are looking to make easy swaps to ensure their meals are more sustainable.
The survey shows that 86 per cent of Ottawans intend to adopt solutions to limit food waste this holiday season.
Step two, Soteroff said, is implementing this knowledge at the individual and retail level.