Adrian, MI – The Materials Management Program Coordinator for Lenawee County, Julie Maurer, has some tips about ways to store your leftovers this Thanksgiving holiday.
Here is program’s breakdown of the best ways to store your leftovers:
Reusable
*The first choice for food storage should be something you can wash and re-use, not disposable single-use plastics or sealable baggies that go right to the landfill.
*We recommend using glass dishes with lids because they not only are long-lasting, but you can see what’s in them while in your refrigerator. The “out of sight, out of mind” saying can sometimes apply to leftovers. If you don’t see them, you often forget about them, and they go bad. Glass storage helps prevent food waste by making it clearly visible in your refrigerator.
*A reusable plastic container will work – just make sure it’s recyclable in case you decide to dispose of it at a later date.
*If you have breads, pastries, or other treats that you would traditionally toss in a sealable storage bag – try purchasing reusable storage bags instead of the single use. Then you can bring them out every Thanksgiving to meet your storage needs!
Recyclable
*You probably don’t want to send home your fancy glass food storage containers with your guests – but there are options that don’t send waste directly to the landfill.
*First, we suggest aluminum! Hop on over to the store and grab some of those a disposable baking pans and used them to plate leftovers. Seal them with aluminum foil.
*This has several benefits:
Easy to reheat in the oven
Aluminum is 100 percent recyclable, so tell your loved ones to clean them off and toss them in their recycling bin when done
No toxins from plastics entering the food!
Make sure you have enough ahead of time to send all your guests home happy and ready to eat!
*You can also order some compostable food containers online, which will allow your guests the ability to toss their food storage along with their scraps right into the compost pile.
Reuse
*If the above options don’t work and you need to go with plastic food storage – this is a great opportunity to reuse some of containers you have on hand. Using whipped cream for your pie? Rinse out the plastic container it comes in and use it to store your leftovers. Empty margarine and sour cream tubs also make great storage.
*Another great option is to stop by your local thrift store and stock up on any food storage items they may have on their shelves. Part of sustainability is giving a second life to something rather than sending it to the landfill. And, if you find a good deal on something nice– it might be something you will feel good about giving away to your guests, and they might just be incentivized to wash and keep it!
*We put a lot of thought and planning into our Thanksgiving meal, but putting just a little bit of that energy into preparing for leftovers can go a long way to preventing food waste and filling up our landfills with disposable plastic storage.
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