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Tips to Reduce Food Waste at Home

Everybody can start stopping food waste at home. And there will be two side effects: Saving money & Making Positive Impact! By taking small steps at home, you can directly reduce your personal environmental impact while contributing to the fight against climate change.

Use your refrigerator properly

Do not just shove food inside your refrigerator. Place it with care. The top shelf is the coldest place. Put raw meat and fish there. Use the bottom drawer only for vegetables. Keep eggs and butter in the door. Every item has a proper home, and if you put it in the right zone, it stays fresh. It does not rot.

Trust Your Nose, Not the Date

A date is just a number, at least in this context! “Best before” does not mean “poison after.” It is only about the taste, not the safety. When the date passes, do not panic. Look at the food, smell it, and taste a little bit. Your senses tell you the truth. If it smells good, eat it. Do not let a stamp decide for you. “The best-before date is not scientifically a use-by or expiry date. Many foods remain edible for a long time—we need to learn to use our senses again.” says Irina Simoncini, a biochemist, research and development expert for Microtarians, Luxembourg. 

The Second Life of Food

Leftovers are not trash. They are ingredients. Do not scrape your plate into the bin. Go online and search for “zero-waste recipes” from experts like Jamie Oliver or BBC Good Food. You can turn old bread into a new meal. You can turn wilted vegetables into soup. Save your money. Save the food.

Stop Waiting. Start Moving.

Do you still feel lost sometimes? Do you stare at the label and feel confused? That is normal. We are all humans, we all make mistakes. But do not let confusion stop you. Guilt does not help the planet. Action does. Do not try to be perfect, just try to be better. Here are some common barriers and our markers to help you:

“I don’t have time to make a plan.”

Use a shopping list app such as Bring! or Listonic to make planning easier and less stressful.​

“I plan too much—there’s always something left over.”

Make a weekly plan with simple dishes that saves time and reduces waste.​

“I don’t know how to store things properly.”

Use visible boxes and sort new food behind existing food in your refrigerator to ensure older items are used first. The USDA FoodKeeper app provides tips for shelf life and storage.​

“I thought it was no longer good.”

Use your senses: look, smell, and taste. The best-before date is not a throw-away date. Check the USDA FoodKeeper app or Too Good To Go for specific food storage guidance.​

“I can’t use up leftovers.”

Use the app My Fridge Food for easy leftover recipes with a search function. You can also:

  • Cook a weekly leftover day where you prepare meals from what you have
  • Garnish with spices, herbs, or dips
  • Turn them into a casserole, soup, or smoothie

“It doesn’t look appetizing anymore.”

Get creative! Repurpose food through:

  • Composting food scraps
  • Fermenting surplus food instead of throwing it away
  • Freezing items for later use
  • Adding garnishes, spices, and herbs to make dishes more appealing

“I can’t see what’s at the back anymore.”

Organize your refrigerator properly with these tips:

  • Keep visible boxes to store items
  • Always place new food behind existing food to follow the FIFO (first in, first out) principle
  • Label and date containers
  • Use the apps USDA FoodKeeper or Too Good To Go for storage guidance

Knowledge Protects Against Waste

Those who know where food comes from and how it is made, waste less. Food education builds appreciation and helps avoid waste. Consider learning about:

Fermentation: With a little salt, water, and time (and no electricity), you can extend the shelf life of food and preserve both taste and nutrients.​

Seasonal foods: Eating seasonally reduces waste and supports local producers

DIY preservation techniques: Learn how to freeze, pickle, or preserve surplus food

Get More Involved

If you have already taken your first small step at home, and you are interested in expanding your impact beyond your household, Foodsharing Luxembourg offers several ways to get involved:

  • Join our Foodsaving project to pick up and redistribute edible food from businesses that would otherwise be thrown away
  • Use our Foodsharing Points to share surplus food with your community for free
  • Organize a workshop in your school or company about food waste issues
  • Become a Foodsaver and help rescue food in your area
  • Support us financially if you’d like to contribute to our mission

This page incorporates research and tips from Foodsharing Luxembourg, the European+ project “Waste Less, Taste More” traveling exhibition, developed by foodsharing e.V. (Germany), Microtarians SIS (Luxembourg), and IDELUX Environnement (Belgium) as part of the EU Erasmus Adult Education Program.

Liewensmëttelverschwendung stoppen: Deel a rett Uebst mat Kierfchen.lu

Eng gratis Online-Plattform hëlleft Lëtzebuerger Residenten Uebst aus traditionelle Bongerten virum Verfaulen ze retten a Gemeinschaften  mateneen ze verbannen.

Wat ass “Kierfchen” a firwat ass dës Initiative wichteg?

Bis an d’Mëtt vum 20. Joerhonnert ware Bongerten d’Haaptquell fir Uebst a ganz Lëtzebuerg. Haut bleift de gréissten Deel vun dësem lokal ugebauten an onbehandelten Uebst net recoltéiert an verfaule gelooss. Als Äntwert op dës Erausfuerderung gouf vum Natur & Geopark Mëllerdall d’Online-Plattform „Kierfchen“ entwéckelt. De Projet gëtt vum Ministère fir Ëmwelt, Klima a Biodiversitéit finanzéiert an huet als Zil, d’Benotze vun dëse Friichten ze fërderen an der Liewensmëttelverschwendung op lokalem Niveau aktiv entgéintzewierken. Et handelt sech ëm eng interaktiv Plattform, déi et jidderengem liicht maache soll, Ressourcen aus dem Bongert ze deelen, ze fannen oder ze notzen, fir datt wäertvoll Friichte vun eise lokale Gemenge konsuméiert ginn.

Wéi funktionéiert daat?

D’Haaptzil vu kierfchen.lu ass et, jiddereen zesummenzebréngen, deen sech mat Bongerten an domat verbonnene lokale Liewensmëttelnetzwierker beschäftegt. D’Plattform offréiert eng gratis interaktiv Kaart, fir Leit am ganze Land mateneen ze verbannen. Zënter dem Fréijoer 2025 deckt d’Kaart dat ganzt Land of. Elo kënnen Awunner iwwerall zu Lëtzebuerg Offeren astellen oder duerchsichen. Egal obs du een eenzegen Äppelbam an dengem Gaart hues oder e Gemeinschaftsbongert manags, du kanns matmaachen. D’Plattform verbënnt Leit, déi Uebst ze vill hunn, mat deenen, déi no lokale Produite sichen, a schaaft esou eng direkt Verbindung tëscht Offer an Demande.

Wie ka matmaachen?

Jidderee ka kierfchen.lu notzen. Et si keng speziell Qualifikatiounen néideg. Klengbaueren, Besëtzer*inne vu Bongerten, Gruppen, Hobbygäertner, Restauranten an Awunner sinn häerzlech wëllkomm! Wanns du Uebst aus Bongerten an domat verbonne Ressourcen recoltéiere, deelen, kafen, tauschen oder zesummeschaffen wëlls, ass dës Plattform genee dat Richtegt fir dech. Och Leit mat nëmmen engem Bam sinn häerzlech invitéiert, sech ze bedeelegen an dobäi ze hëllefen, Offall ze reduzéieren a gläichzäiteg lokal Liewensmëttelnetzwierker ze stäerken.

Wat fënnt een op der Kaart?

D’Plattform bitt eng ganz Rei Offeren un, déi iwwer just Uebst erausginn. Et fënnt een hei Friichten an Nëss, déi recoltéiert oder kaaft kënne ginn, regional Produzenten, Restauranten, déi lokal Ingrediente bezéien, Imker, Véiziichter, Maschinnen fir d‘Recolte fir auszeléinen oder ze lounen, Berodungsplaze fir Naturschutz a Evenementer. Kierfchen.lu promovéiert och d’Campagne „Gielt Band“ vum Landwirtschaftsministère, wou mat engem giele Band markéiert Beem signaliséieren, datt d’Friichte vun all Mënsch däerfe gepléckt ginn. Et ass eng zentral Ulafstell fir alles, wat mat der Lëtzebuerger Landschaft a Bongerten ze dinn huet.

Momentan ass d‘Plattform nëmmen op Däitsch disponibel, mä Iwwersetzungen an aner Sproochen sinn an der Maach.

Wéi kann ech matmaache?

Prett een Ënnerscheed ze maachen? Hei ass, wéis de starte kanns:

Post däi Bam oder deng Recolte: Hues du Uebst ze vill? Looss anerer et wëssen andeems de eng gratis Annonce op der Kaart derbäi setz.

Sich fir nobäi Annoncen op der Kaart: Obs de no Äppel, Prommen oder Plaz fir Beien ze ziichte sichs, entdeck wat et uechter Lëtzebuerg gëtt.

Deel d‘Plattform an dengem Netzwierk: Hëllef Noperen a Frënn kierfchen.lu ze entdecken andeems de et op Social Media a mëndlech deels.

Dësen Artikel baséiert op engem Gespréich tëschent dem Shashi Bhushan (Web Editor fir Foodsharing Luxembourg asbl) an dem Julie Plumer (Chargée du projet, Natura 2000 verbindet, Natur & Geopark Mëllerdall).

Stop Food Waste: Share and Save Fruits with Kierfchen.lu

Photo credit: kierfchen.lu

A free online platform is helping Luxembourg residents rescue traditional orchard fruit from going to waste while building community connections.

What is Kierfchen And Why it Matters

Until the middle of the 20th century, meadow orchards were the main source of fruit throughout Luxembourg. Today, most of this locally grown, unsprayed fruit goes unharvested and unused. In response to this challenge, the online platform ‘Kierfchen’ was developed by Natur & Geopark Mëllerdall. The project is financed by the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, with the goal of encouraging the use of this fruit and actively counteracting food waste at the local level. It is an interactive platform aiming to make it easy for anyone to share, find, or use orchard resources so that valuable fruit is consumed by our local communities.

How It Works

The main goal of kierfchen.lu is to bring together everyone involved with orchard meadows and related local food networks. It uses a free, interactive map to connect people across the country. Since Spring 2025, the map covers the entire country. Now, residents anywhere in Luxembourg can post listings or browse offers. Whether you have a single apple tree in your garden or manage a community orchard, you can participate. The platform connects people who have surplus fruit with those searching for local produce, creating a direct link between supply and demand.

Who Can Join

Anyone can use kierfchen.lu. No special qualifications are required. Smallholders, orchard owners, community groups, home gardeners, restaurants, and residents are all welcome! If you are looking to harvest, share, buy, swap, or collaborate around orchard fruit and related resources, this platform is for you. Even individuals with just one tree are encouraged to get involved and help reduce waste while strengthening local food networks.

What You Will Find on the Map

The platform hosts a wide variety of listings beyond just fruit. You will discover fruits and nuts available for harvest or purchase, regional producers, restaurants sourcing local ingredients, beekeepers, livestock keepers, harvesting equipment for loan or rent, conservation advice centers, and upcoming events. Kierfchen.lu also promotes the ‘Gielt Band’ campaign from the Ministry of Agriculture, where trees marked with a yellow ribbon signal that the fruit may be harvested by anyone. It is a one-stop resource for everything related to Luxembourg’s orchard landscape.

Currently, the platform is available in German, with translations into other languages in progress.

How to Get Involved 

Ready to make a difference? Here’s how you can start:

Post your tree or harvest offer: Have surplus fruit? Let others know by adding a free listing to the map.

Search the map for nearby listings: Whether you are looking for apples, plums, or beekeeping space, explore what is available across Luxembourg.

Share the platform with your network: Help neighbours and friends discover kierfchen.lu through social media and word of mouth.

This article is based on a conversation between Shashi Bhushan (Web Editor for Foodsharing Luxembourg asbl) and Julie Plumer (Chargée du projet, Natura 2000 verbindet, Natur & Geopark Mëllerdall).

A strong call for fair and resilient agriculture

🌱 On June 30, 2025, the Meng Landwirtschaft platform and its 19 member organisations, including Foodsharing Luxembourg, presented the 4th, fully revised edition of their plea for a thorough overhaul of agricultural policy, near the 2,000 m² field at the Maison vun der Natur.

🎯 Objective: To stimulate public debate on the future of agriculture in Luxembourg and actively contribute to it. Meng Landwirtschaft calls on Luxembourg’s political leaders—at both the national and European levels—to build a sustainable framework for agriculture that is no longer solely subject to competition law, but recognised as a social, ecological, and public-interest pillar.

📢 Another agriculture is possible: fairer, more resilient, and inclusive!

👉 Learn more: Advocacy for a fair and resilient agricultural policy

What if all food were consumed and no food were wasted?

Foodsharing Luxembourg contributed to the July edition of the CIRCLE OF LIFE series organised by microtarians SIS on Sunday the 6th of July in the frame of LUGA. Due to the bad weather, this edition was relocated from the urban farm Kuerbebierg to the Quartier Stuff Grünewald.

Besides providing rescued foods and giving a hand, we contributed with a participative discussion round with the title “What if all food were consumed and no food were wasted?”.

What if all edible food were consumed and no food were wasted

Let’s imagine we are in the year 2030. Food loss and waste are issues of the past. How did we manage to do so? How does every sector look like now?

After an imagination exercise and a collective topic identification, we had a fishbowl conversation, which most participants used to actively join the discussion, giving everyone in the room a chance to contribute. The invitees Hannah Proffitt-Perchard, Pauline Seeburger and Stefania Filice got the discussion started. The whole session was facilitated by Daniel Waxweiler.

The collective topic identification resulted in a wall of post-its with topics, which were clustered according to categories that emerged naturally. Improvements along the whole production chain were collected, and the role of regulations was highlighted. Raising awareness with young people was another bigger cluster.

by Daniel Waxweiler

In the following discussion round, we started by talking about how accessible an organic or local diet is and how gardens could be made more accessible for everyone by communes. Then, we wondered why many people don’t prioritise conserving food. Is food too cheap? Or was the knowledge lost? This lead us to talk about how children get in touch in some places already more with how their food grows and how it can be transformed. We also shifted our attention to how to help people to waste less. Could rewards work even better than punishments at the individual level? Too what degree could technological solutions help? We closed this round by reminding us that creating communities is essential for solving the issue from the bottom-up.

by Eunice Sánchez González

After that, we collectively enjoyed the food based on rescued vegetables and fruits and on fermented surprises by microtarians.

by Hannah Proffitt-Perchard
by Hannah Proffitt-Perchard

And how do you image the future?

Foodsharing Luxembourg calls for ambitious national measures to reduce food loss and waste

Luxembourg, 12th March 2025

On 19 February 2025, the European Union reached a provisional agreement on the first binding targets to reduce food waste in the history of the EU and globally. These envisage a reduction of 10% in manufacturing and by 30% in retail, restaurants and households by 2030. But these targets are incompatible with Sustainable Development Goal 12.3, which is to halve food waste by 2030. Foodsharing Luxembourg calls for Luxembourg to go beyond these minimum requirements and take a pioneering role in the fight against food loss and waste.

The urgency of action is undisputed: Representatives of all political parties and experts agreed even before the last national elections that more must be done. This was evident at our panel discussion on 28 September 2023, where experts such as Dr. Rachel Reckinger (University of Luxembourg), Estelle Flammang (on.perfekt) and Svenja Zelder (IBLA) discussed concrete solutions together with political representatives. In addition, the national strategy for adapting to the consequences of climate change, presented by the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity on 7 February 2025, includes 131 measures, including the reduction of food waste. Now it is important to follow up these words with decisive action.

Foodsharing Luxembourg presents 10 concrete measures aimed directly at advising the government, in order to significantly reduce food waste along the entire value chain through its own legislative text. This list of demands is supported by the organisations Etika, Frères des Hommes, Foodsharing Akademie by foodsharing e.V., microtarians, Greenpeace Luxembourg, the platform Meng Landwirtschaft and Transition Minett. “The proposed EU requirements are not enough. Luxembourg has the opportunity to lead the way and set ambitious national targets to reduce food loss and waste and to take effective concrete measures,” says Daniel Waxweiler, European Climate Pact Ambassador and member of Foodsharing Luxembourg.

Link to political demands: https://foodsharing.lu/political-demands/

Foodsharing Luxembourg calls on the national government to finally introduce a law with decisive measures against food loss and waste. Tackling food loss and waste is not only a sustainability imperative, but also an effective measure to curb global warming and conserve resources. The time to act is now.