National Nutrition Month 2018
March is NATIONAL NUTRITION MONTH!
Every year the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics celebrates all things food and nutrition during the month of March with hopes of focusing our attention back to our health.
This year's theme is "Go Further with Food" to encourage you to focus on food sustainability and eliminating food waste!
Check out these tricks and tips to add to your toolbox in helping you to eliminate waste!
- Freeze leftovers! SO many times, we have opened the fridge on the weekend and thrown out multiple containers of leftovers (because I am a food safety crazy person!) and it BREAKS MY HEART. One thing we have started doing is freezing our leftovers and deeming one night a week for dinner, leftover night!
- Save the veggie ends! My husband's favorite snack: cut up veggies and hummus. The problem: we were always just throwing away the carrot peelings and the ends of the celery stalks- save it all! We started saving all those 'ugly' odds and ends and putting them in a ziploc. Once the ziploc was full, I put it all in the InstantPot or a big ole pot on the stove with some water and BOOM- veggie broth!
- Focus on portion control! I always tell clients to be mindful of how your plate looks at meals; 1/2 of your plate should be made of fruits and veggies, 1/4 should be made of lean protein, and the remaining 1/4 should be grains.
- Preparation is key! Prepping meals and snacks ahead of time helps eliminate waste in the long run because you KNOW what you are going to make/take with you. Wondering what to make/take? Aim for at least 3 food groups* at mealtime and at least 2 food groups at snacks to ensure a proper balance of nutrition!
*5 food groups: Grains, Protein, Fruits, Vegetables, Dairy
Love on your local farmers (check out Cul2vate) and be mindful to eliminate as much waste as you can this month and on!
Have further questions, comment below!