What is a good way to get rid of old food in fridge if I want to go green?

Question

I throw it in the trash, but someone mentioned I could throw it in my yard with the plants????

food like old cooked vegetables, etc

Answer 1

yeah thats a great idea to put it with you flowers, or garden i bet it would be a great fertilizer!!

Answer 2

leave it in there and it will go green

Answer 3

You can compost everything but meat, dairy, or fats.

Answer 4

"Compost" is the word used for this type of thing. Its best not to mix flesh & veggies together as it takes longer to break down and attracts different bugs. Veggies/leaves/flowers/grass cuttings/etc. decompose in a few weeks, especially if there's much sun or heat. You can also bury your old veggie stuff, too, it'll probably decompose even faster. Just remember, earth is made of decomposed nature!!

There are many books on Composting

Answer 5

Of course you can do that. It's called a compost. Where instead of throwing food out you put it outside leave it there for a couple of weeks and voila! you have fresh soil perfect for plants.

Answer 6

compost. homeless shelter? no clue.

Answer 7

Two suggestions.

For the meat and bones, bury it in your yard.  It will decompose and enrich the soil with nitrogen - helping whatever you're growing out there.

For veggies, etc., you have three options.  First, bury it like the meat.  This is better than putting it into a compost pile.  Composted plant matter releases nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and other nutrients into the atmosphere.  If buried, more of this stuff stays in the ground where it can improbe the soil quality.

Second option:  charcoal it.  I find that whenever I'm finished cooking on the grill (charcoal fire) it stays hot for hours and hours.  I put my old corncobs and other veggie scraps (even weeds and dead wood that falls out of my trees) into an old pot with a lid.  I add a few tablespoons of water.  I cover it tightly with the lid and put it back on the fire.  If the grill is hot enough for long enough, the contents of the pot will turn into charcoal.  If there's no water in it, the scraps will burn and turn at least partially into ash.  The water forms steam which drives out the oxygen and makes it impossible for the stuff in the pot to burn.  

From this stage, I have two options.

The first option is to crumble it up and use it to improve the soil.  Carbon content is an easily depleted component of healthy soil, and mixing this home-made charcoal into my garden soil works like jet fuel for plants.  About 25% charcoal by volume works wonders.

The second option is to use it to cook your next meal on the grill.  I find I seldom have to buy bags of charcoal as long as I use this technique to produce (almost) as much charcoal as I consume.  

Hint - use the veggie and scrap based charcoal for soil purposes, use the deadwood charcoal for cooking purposes.

Answer 8

Composting is simple. I've never had a rodent etc. prob. but my soil has become very rich and nice. (I started with clay soil)

Answer 9

Best answer is to reduce your waste by not over-budgetting when cooking.  This will help save food and energy resources and decrease your waste.  If you do over-budget try to use those foods up before cooking more. Look into creative ways to make leftovers yummy. I do a lot of "leftover nights" and turn all those cooked items into casseroles or stir frys.  Cooked foods should not be added to compost so once they've gone bad they're pretty much going in the garbage or sewer.

Answer 10

Leave old food in the fridge & it will go green by itself.

Answer 11

you can make a compost out of veggies and bread things like that and start a garden of your own. then you will be very green. also you can probably donate any unopened items to your local soup kitchen for the homeless.

Answer 12

finish it, turn it into compost or leave it for the pet, your choice

Answer 13

compost

Answer 14

listen to quack quack

Answer 15

What exactly do you mean "go green"? that just means that you're trying to make it seem like you're a "proffessanal". Anyway, eat it, or compost it. BE SURE TO CUT UP THE FOOD BEFORE PUTTING OUT IN YOUR GARDEN. thank you, and have a nice day.

Answer 16

feed it to the dog

Answer 17

if u have cats or dogs give it to them if u don't just throw it away

Answer 18

As others have said, composting! It's easy and even kind of fun, and it produces the most beautiful dirt you can imagine.

http://www.organicgardening.com/subchann...

If you don't have space for a compost bin, a good alternative might be a worm bin. If you maintain it properly to prevent odors, you can even keep worm bins in a house or apartment.

http://www.cityfarmer.org/wormcomp61.htm...

You can also feed many types of "people food" to dogs, who are technically omniovores. However, dogs should NEVER be fed people food as anything more than a supplement to their ordinary diet, and if it's given regularly as an extra, be careful to watch the dog's weight. Some foods are also harmful to dogs, especially chocolate and cooked bones. And nothing spoiled or rancid, obviously. Also be warned that sudden changes in diet can give dogs diarrhea, but if you routinely give them some extras from your plate they should be okay.

A pig would be even better, but unless you live in the country or have access to a farmer to donate them to, I'm not sure I'd recommend that. Pigs are much cleaner than you'd think, but they still stink. Chickens are a slightly more urban/suburban friendly alternative, but they eat a more limited variety of scraps than pigs or dogs: http://poultryone.com/articles/scraps.ht...

http://urbanchickens.org/

Answer 19

If you throw it out side in your garden, you are asking for rodents & other critters to come around looking for food. Put it in the trash unless you have a compost pile..

Answer 20

If they ain't bad, eat 'em.

I heard in NY they have lil' worms at home in a box, then they throw their left over food in the worm box and the worms eat 'em up.

Then they poo (of course) and the peeps take the p**p as fertiliser for plants.

Yeah, you could do that (:

Unless if you're afraid of worms, then I guess I'm outta ideas.

My fridge is always empty due to my family's appetites ;D

Answer 21

If you have green waste or a compost heap you can toss plant material that hasn't been cooked or mixed with any oils or meat.

I've heard that you can compost meat and other cooked items, but they generally take more effort attract rodents and other pest and tend to smell.

The greenest thing you can do is stop wasting food. If you dine out often and find you don't eat left overs, share a meal with someone or ask for a smaller portion. If you find you have leftovers when cooking at home and you don't eat them here are a few tips. Freeze a portion so you don't have to eat the same thing 2 days in a row. Buy your meat from the deli counter and have them portion it in quantities that work for you. If you are 1 person ask for 1/2 # of hamburger etc. If you are 4 people and meat is packed in multiples of 6, then ask the package be split. Always shop with a list. Make a menu for the amount of days you will be shopping for and make a list of what you need. Check to see if you already have items before they go onto the list.

Answer 22

As everyone here says, you can compost your old food, however not everyone can do this. If you don't garden, don't have the property to set up a compost pile, don't want to attract the rodents and critters, or simply don't want to deal with the gardening thing, your best alternative is to send your food scraps down the garbage disposal. But don't put potato peels or similar flat slippery trimmings through because they will stop up the disposal. Any organic material that goes through the disposal is broken down into a slush that gets collected by way of the sewer system. When the waste reaches the waste water treatment plant, it gets digested, composted, and generally cleaned up and separated from the liquids. These solids are then used as fertilizer (as in Milorganite from the city of Milwaukee) or as feedstock for burning to replace petroleum oils in power generation. In some cases, it remains with a certain amount of the treated water and is used as a water and fertilizer source for parks, golf courses, etc. Once the Public Waste Treatment facility gets it, it is not wasted, it does not go to landfill, and it benefits the community.

Answer 23

Compost it.

Throwing it in the plants is basically the same as composting it, but it has problems of being unsightly and attracting insects.  If those things aren't of concern, then just throw it in the plants.

Answer 24

I'm sure you must have heard of compost.

If you have a yard , you have room for a composter of some sort. You can make your own, too. You can get all the information you need here:

http://www.epa.gov/compost/  

And, if you google "compost" you will find plenty of sites that sell composters and / or tell you how to make your own.

We once just put up a small circle of chicken-wire and filled it with our compost.

DO read what the EPA says on what to compost and what not to compost. You'd be surprised what you can and can't compost.

Also, if you live in the country, consider getting chickens. You don't HAVE to have a rooster (they are noisy) to get eggs, AND, chickens will eat almost everything that comes out of your fridge!

Answer 25

Almost all food can be composted.

Placing it in your garden as is will NOT be effective for anything aside from attracting animals like gophers, badgers and raccoons to dig in the garden, destroying what you planted.

If you do not wish to throw it out, compost it in a composter or compost pile.

http://www.ehow.com/how_3541_begin-compo...

Answer 26

You can start a compost pile. You put everything in it, except for meats and sweets. Its a rhyme, No meats, No sweets! After a while, it becomes dirt and if you put it in your garden, it helps the plants grow better.

Answer 27

Firstly, composting

Answer 28

I would recommend just throwing it out and starting over. Going green is a process and its not gonna matter if you throw something out one more time because en ought people haven't made that change to make a difference.