SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) – People generate a lot of waste during the holidays, but one of the biggest that many don’t think about is food waste. It is essential to ensure that you are aware of how much food you prepare and throw away.

Ashley Krug, market development coordinator for Springfield Environmental Services, says it’s not as simple as food breaking down.

“What happens in landfills is that space is very important, so as soon as something comes in, we’re going to crush it; it’s going to become very restricted inside this space. This removes air from that space, which becomes what we call an anaerobic environment. So in these anaerobic environments, things take a long time to decompose, and when they decompose, they generate methane,” Krug said.

There are several steps you can take to be mindful of the food you eat this Thanksgiving. To start, don’t earn more than you plan to eat.

“We want to start with preparation and planning first,” Krug said. “You don’t need three bags of potatoes, and a lot of times we buy these things in bulk because we think we need them, and then you have potatoes for the rest of your life.”

A great tool to use is this guest host from Save the Food. This helps you plan how much food you need to purchase for your event.

Another option is to save and freeze what you can. When you’re tired of leftovers, you can freeze the rest and use them later.

“Remember, our freezer is also our friend,” Krug said. “Freezers put a pause button on foods so you can make them last a little longer. So when we can freeze these foods and eat them when we come out of our turkey coma, it will help us manage our waste eating. .”

Finally, you can compost. It is possible to compost at home. Just skip meat and dairy, as they can harbor pathogens.

“Everything about preparation. It’s your vegetables, your fruits, even your breads. The only things we don’t want to compost at home are meat and dairy,” Krug said.

Now, if you have meat, dairy, or other foods that you don’t want to compost, don’t worry. Springfield Recycling Centers compost food, any food. You don’t have to live in Springfield to use it either.

“People can bring in their food waste, even their meat, their dairy, their turkey carcasses, at the end of the year, and we’re going to turn it into compost instead of sending it to the landfill. It’s about citizens of Springfield, but also the region and even the region, really thinking about their food waste,” Krug said.

There is also waste other than food. You should consider using reusable plates, cutlery and cups, as disposable cups, plates and cutlery cannot be recycled.

“What I tell people is, again, we’re going to try to be attentive from the beginning. It’s very easy to buy paper plates and plastic forks and spoons, and sometimes it’s a necessity, and I understand that, but people don’t realize that these items can’t be recycled once they’re used. “They have food waste, because it becomes a contaminant, so those will have to go in the trash,” Krug said.

The best thing you can do is be attentive. Try not to produce more than you need and recycle as much as you can. For more information, visit Springfield Environmental Services. here.

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