Meal prepping is a great way to reduce food waste and save money! Here are some of our top tips and recipes for meal prepping.

Food waste in Canada

Did you know that about 58% of food produced in Canada is lost or wasted each year? And that equals 140 kilograms of wasted food per household! 
This works out to be a lot of money and resources that we are simply throwing out – and that’s not sustainable. Meal-prepping can be part of the answer to helping you reduce your food waste in your house! It’ll save you money, and food waste. 

How meal prepping reduces food waste

If you’ve ever gone to the grocery store without a plan, and ended up with way too much food that you don’t end up eating, meal prepping could be your solution! Having a well-thought-out meal plan and grocery list helps can help you reduce food waste, as you know what you’ll be cooking and what you'll need for each meal.

6 Tips to Make Your Meal Prepping a Success

• Make freezer-friendly meals. Having meals in my freezer that I can just pull out and reheat is a huge game changer. Ensuring that they are healthy, veggie packed as well sets me up for success.
• Clean as you go. There’s no denying it – living lower waste, and meal-prepping results in a lot more dishes. Making sure you clean up as you go will save you in the long run! 
• Plan ahead! Know you are heading out to a holiday party on Friday this week? Plan for that! Using a calendar is a great way to stay on top of things and plan ahead. I use the notes app on my phone that also has our grocery list on it, making everything in one place.
• Switch it up. I’ve failed at meal prepping before by just making one huge batch of something, that I then have to eat every day that week – that can get boring quick! You can get crazy and make a huge batch of, say a curry, freeze half for weeks in the future, and save half for that week. 

• Prep ahead of time. As you’re unloading your groceries, washing and chopping things before they go into the fridge is a great way to get ahead. 
• Make double batches: cooking a casserole? Make a double batch and freeze half!

Our favourite recipes for meal-prepping

Made with Local bars: meal prepping not just for your dinners, but also snacks is a total game-changer! The Made with Local bar mix is perfect for snacks (or even breakfast).

Overnight oats: overnights oats are so easy to make, and such a good grab-and-go breakfast! Use our mix, or make your own with ingredients from your kitchen! Add some fruit and you’ve got a delicious breakfast.

Soups: make your own veggie stock with scraps from your meal-prepping and turn it into soups! This method helps reduce food waste, and will save you money! We love this bean soup by Feel Good Foodie.Soups also freeze really well, so if you freeze half your soup, you’ve got meals already made for you in the freezer. We’ve also got ready-made soup kits for you if you need something even easier.

Lasagna: use this tomato sauce recipe and our lasagna noodles, and you’ve got yourself a delicious lasagna that can be eaten for lunches or dinners!