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How much food did we throw away?
This is the cost nobody counts, because it leaves in the trash rather than at the register.
Over a year
$624
That is 6 percent of the grocery bill.
This is more normal than it feels
That is about 6 percent of what you spend on groceries.
Food that goes unused can add up, and it is not a personal failing. It is what happens when you shop for the week you planned rather than the week you got.
The one thing worth doing
Before you write your grocery list, check the fridge for food to use first. Plan a meal around what you already have.
Why this happens to careful people
Food waste is not carelessness. It is the gap between the week you shopped for and the week you actually had. You bought for five home-cooked dinners and got three, because something ran late twice.
It is also why buying more to save more so often backfires. A discount on something that ends up in the bin is not a discount at all.
The fix is almost never a better system. It is usually one shelf, at eye level, holding only what needs eating this week.
See the whole picture
Waste is one of four things that quietly take back what the coupons saved.
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