As the squeeze on household finances continues to tighten due to the cost of living crisis, making the most of every penny spent is a must.
And, that includes ensuring your groceries survive the longest possible time after purchase.
Tessa Clarke is co-founder of food-sharing app Olio, which helps people offer surplus food to their local community for free.
She has share some smart techniques to help minimise the amount of food that ends up in the bin – because that is no good to anyone.
So, here are Ms Clarke’s 14 hacks on how to store food properly in your home…
It is important that we look after our food and avoid waste and in turn cut costs as the cost of living crisis takes a grip on many families (File image)
A survey by Discarded Spirits has found that 56 per cent of Brits are guilty of throwing out fruit left to rot in fridges and bowls, with bananas the most likely to be thrown away
The average UK family throws away £730 of food they could have eaten every year.
While collectively we throw away 4.4 million potatoes, 2.7 million carrots and 1.2 million tomatoes every single day, report MoneySavingExpert.
But while we do our best to use up leftovers with our zero waste recipes, it’s often a challenge to know what food will go off first.
So, here is how households in Britain can store their food properly in order to cut costs and food waste.
Tomatoes
These should be stored in a bowl on your kitchen counter rather than in the fridge.
This is because they tend to go a bit ‘mealy’ in the fridge.
And there is also a surprising solution to ensure your tomatoes stay fresher for longer which has gone viral on TikTok.
Apples
These fruits work well in a fruit bowl, any bruised apples should be quickly removed as they give off more ethylene.
And this accelerates the ripening process and sees them go off quicker.
Lemons
Your citrus fruits shouldn’t stay outside on the counter top as they’ll only last about the week there (File image)
If you keep your citrus fruits on the counter top, they’ll last only about a week, especially in the heat.
Therefore, keeping them in a sealed plastic bag or container in the fridge will make them last four times longer.
And a TikTok video by @brightly.eco has gone viral, with more than 20,000 views, after she revealed how you can prevent food waste by making your citrus fruits stay fresh for more than a month.
Banana
They also give off ethylene which accelerates their ripening.
In order to slow this down, you can cover the top of the bunch with beeswax wrap or tin foil. And this will given them a couple of extra days.
Avocado
In order to stop avocadoes from browning or going bad quickly, you can pop a slice of onion in a plastic container with the opened fruit (File image)
They’re a brunch favourite, but they go brown or bad so quickly.
In order to stop that, pop a slice of onion in a plastic container with an opened avocado.
Alternatively, you can rub the open side of the avocado with lemon juice.
And, if you’ve made guacamole, simply spray it with a light layer of lukewarm water to prevent the air making contact, which keeps it fresh for longer.
Bread
In order to make your bread or baguette last longer, you should buy whole loaves rather than sliced.
When you purchase your loaves like this, you should wrap them in cotton bags or plastic and store them in an airtight container on the worktop.
And according to experts, you’ve been storing bread WRONG in summer.
Cake
According to the expert, cake shouldn’t be stored outside but should be kept in the fridge with a slice of bread on top (File image)
We all love cake, but sometimes we don’t quite finish the entire thing.
In order to keep it moist, you should store it with a slice of bread on top. This is because the bread will dry out, leaving your chocolate sponge lovely underneath.
Wine
If you’re not going to drink the whole thing, you can freeze the remains of a bottle of wine in a suitable container, then it out when you’re cooking a risotto, or making a stew or gravy.
But if you plan to drink the rest, pouring the remains into a sealed container is the best trick, rather than popping the cork back in the bottle.
Berries
Berries always go off so quickly, and often when we’re craving a punnet of strawberries half have turned to mush.
In order to store them properly just give them a quick rinse in a water and vinegar solution, which will be one part vinegar to 10 parts water.
Then tap it dry and store in a container or tupperware box in the fridge.
And a food TikToker has recently shared an easy kitchen hack on how to keep your strawberries fresher for longer – and you need just two ingredients.
Dairy
Ms Clarke advises households to stop storing their dairy in the door of their fridge – saying it should instead be placed at the back (File image)
You shouldn’t be storing your milk on the door of the fridge.
Instead, you should store any dairy at the back, where the temperature is coldest in order to give it maximum shelf life.
And contrary to popular belief, milk and cream can both be frozen, although make sure to freeze the bottles three-quarters full to allow for expansion.
Herbs
These should be stored like flowers – upwards in a jar of water and on your worktop.
But if you find that this takes up a lot of space in your kitchen, you can store them in a plastic container with a damp cloth or piece of kitchen towel in the fridge.
And if you’re wanting to keep them fresh as possible, chop them up and freeze them in an ice cube tray in some water or oil. It can then be easily popped out and used in your cooking.
Celery
Simply wrap it up in tin foil and store it in the fridge.
This will make sure that its kept nice and crisp.
Honey
When stored in a sealed glass jar in a cool, dark place, honey can last forever.
However, if it does crystallise, just pop the jar in some warm water and it will liquefy again.
