5 Tips to Make Your Food Last

The guide outlines five strategies to extend the life of household food supplies: maintaining correct refrigerator and freezer temperatures, distinguishing between 'use by' and 'best before' labels, repurposing aging produce, using ingredient substitutes, and utilizing food scraps for stock or gardening.

• To minimize bacteria and maximize the longevity of perishable items, refrigerators should be set at or below 40 degrees F (4 degrees C) and freezers should be set at 0 degrees F (-18 degrees C).
• Consumers should distinguish between date labels: 'best before' dates indicate peak freshness rather than safety, whereas 'use by' dates on perishables like meat and dairy are safety guidelines that should be followed.
• Food waste can be reduced by repurposing aging produce into new dishes (such as using brown bananas for banana bread) or by using ingredient substitutes (such as apple juice instead of white wine).
• Vegetable scraps can be repurposed to create vegetable stock for soups and risotto or used to grow new vegetables in an indoor garden.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). 5 Tips to Make Your Food Last. https://www.wri.org/food/5-tips-make-your-food-last

Chicago

World Resources Institute. 5 Tips to Make Your Food Last. n.d. https://www.wri.org/food/5-tips-make-your-food-last.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=5 Tips to Make Your Food Last |url=https://www.wri.org/food/5-tips-make-your-food-last |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendtips, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{5 Tips to Make Your Food Last}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/food/5-tips-make-your-food-last}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }