Around a third of all the food we buy ends up being thrown in the bin and most of this could have been eaten. Wasting food costs the average family with children £680 a year and has serious environmental implications too. Each day we waste:

• 1 million slices of ham
• 1.3 million yoghurts and yoghurt drinks
• 7 million slices of bread
• 5.1 million potatoes
• 1.6 million bananas
• 4.4 million apples
• 2.8 million tomatoes

You can reduce the amount of food you throw away by doing the following:

Make a meal planner – planning your meals, and your shopping around those meals, can save you time, money and food.
Store cupboard essentials - Keep essentials in the cupboard, fridge and freezer and you’ll always be able to whip up something delicious.
Know your use by and best before dates – best before dates refer to quality rather than food safety. Foods with a best before date can be eaten but they may no longer be at their best. The exception to this is eggs - Never eat eggs after the best before date. Never eat products after the use by date and follow the storage instructions. However, check to see if the food can be frozen if you need to eat it at a later date.

For further top tips on keeping food fresher for longer, recipe ideas for leftovers, portion control and meal planning visit the Love Food Hate Waste website at www.lovefoodhatewaste.com