Food Waste in Flats
“ Did you know that eliminating food waste has been ranked as the third-best global solution to tackling climate change? This statistic piqued my interest in food waste, along with the fact that it combines sustainability and food which are two things that I’m all about.”
Food Science and Plant Biotechnology student Ashlee Drummy was awarded a scholarship from Waste Management NZ to complete a 10 week summer studentship to develop a resource to reduce food waste in flats.
Ashlee developed a set of meal plans, which are designed to feed four students five dinner meals per week. The meals are healthy, affordable, and zero-waste. As well as recipes, the meal plans contain helpful information such as nutrition information, the cost per serving and food waste reduction tips.
“I first set about finding out what sorts of food students commonly waste and why,” Explains Ashlee. “It turns out that a general lack of planning and organisation around food management is to blame for leftovers, fresh foods and opened products getting chucked in the bin. From there, I came up with ideas for various interventions and that’s how my weekly meal plans evolved.”
Now that the meal plans are ready for testing, trials in student flats are underway and the final products of this project are due to be launched during sustainability week in March 2021.
This project will be so valuable for the student community in so many ways. Reducing students’ food waste will save them money, reduce their environmental impact, alleviate feelings of guilt surrounding wasting food and, hopefully, lead to less food spilling out of Dunedin bins onto the pavement.
Thank you Ashlee, Waste Management NZ, and the Sustainability Office for your contribution to this important mission!