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www.FredParent.NET 11 4. Use Your Freezer The freezer stops the clock on food, making it your best resource for helping to avoid things going bad. Have a handful of raspberries get- ting mushy in the fridge? They may be too unpleasant to eat fresh but rinsing them off and freezing them just bought you an ingredi- ent for a blended fruit smoothie. 5. LABEL Research finds that 96 percent more leftovers would be eaten if we knew what was in the con- tainers! Keep a roll of mask- ing tape near the fridge and write down the contents of each leftover contain- er or Tupperware item so that all family members know what they can eat. 6. Use Technology The USDA has a free app called FoodKeeper, which helps to educate you on food storage and safety. Buying local helps the environment tre- mendously. When you buy local, you are cutting down on the time and resources that went into production of similar produce elsewhere. Keep in mind that transporting produce long distances uses a great deal of fossil fuels. 7. Buy LOCAL Produce It's imperative to enlighten others about the impact of food waste on the environment, as well as how easy it can be to save food and money by simply making more of an effort. Share tips with others and stress the importance of what simple changes can do. "Sell-by" and "use-by" dates can get people confused and nervous, allowing lots of unnecessary waste of useable food. These stamped dates are intended more for retail- ers to know when to pull an item from the shelf rather than for safety. A better tenet to follow is to simply trust your sense of smell. Your nose will tell you if milk has soured or if that ground beef has gone bad. Focus on using these items before they've had a chance to get to that point. Did you know that the air is colder on the lower shelves in your refrig- erator? This makes it the better section to store things like meat and dairy, so they have less chance of going bad too soon. 8. Know Your FRIDGE 10. Educate Others 9. Trust Your NOSE