Food waste

Every year in the UK we throw away £12 billion worth of good food, costing the average family £50 a month.

The good news is that there are some quick and easy things we can all do to reduce this. Here are a few of our favourites to make the most of your bakery products.

For more top tips and recipes to help reduce food waste visit www.lovefoodhatewaste.com

Make the most of your bakery products
Most bakery products have a ‘best before’ date - these dates refer to quality, so your bakery products can still be eaten after this date, but may no longer be at their best. Food dates explained.
Sliced breads, pitta breads, crumpets, hot cross buns and bagels are all are great for freezing and can be toasted straight from frozen as and when you like.
Make slightly stale bread and leftover bread crusts into breadcrumbs by whizzing up in a food processor, and store in the freezer to use later in bread sauces, savoury crumbles or as a coating for chicken or fish.
Use up leftover croissants and muffins to make a traditional bread and butter pudding with a twist – take a look at some recipes.
Freeze leftover cake in slices; defrost slice by slice for a tasty treat – or if you have a whole cake to freeze, wrap in a layer of plastic wrap, then in a layer of foil, and freeze for up to one month.
Storing bread in the fridge can make it go stale quicker. The best place to store bread is in a cool, dark and dry place, your bread bin or store cupboard is perfect.
To freshen up a day old loaf, hold it very briefly under a running cold tap. Give it a good shake and pop in a hot oven for about 10 minutes; it will be as soft and crusty as freshly baked bread.
Spread the crusts from a loaf with garlic butter and toast under the grill, cut into fingers and serve for a quick and easy snack. More recipes.