Waste No Food Challenge

I just came across a great blog, by Katy. She has issued a "Waste no Food Challenge" which I quickly signed up for. The rules are simple: Don't waste any food for a 30-day period. I started yesterday when I polished off all my Taco Bell dinner instead of throwing the remains in the trash. I haven't had any TB in a loooong time and just when I thought I wouldn't be able to finish, I convinced my husband to eat the last piece of cheese quesadilla.

Despite my best intentions, we are a household of food wasters. (Dear Mother-in-Law, if you are reading this, please cover your eyes.) I have been seriously considering purchasing a small apartment sized fridge so I can keep better track of our food and leftovers. Did any of you see the Freegan-inspired Oprah? This cute couple was so inspiring. They dumpster dive even though they make plenty of money and they aren't ashamed of their less-than-traditional food foraging habits one bit.

Anyway, back to the food challenge. We are a household of two and I'm embarassed by how much food ends up spoiling in our fridge. And condiments? We had about 40 bottles when we did a "deep clean" on the fridge yesterday.

I try to console myself by the fact that we at least compost 90% of the food waste. But when I see the mushy vegetables in the compost bucket and the bits of meat going into the trash, I also see something else. Dollars. For every bit of food we waste, that's part of our grocery money going into the garbage.

How about you? Are you a food waster or a food user-upper? What are some of the common foods that find their way into your trash or compost?

Do you want to join Katy's Waste-No-Food challenge? Head over to her blog and sign up. Please?I need some moral support!