You find wilted vegetables every week
Bought with good intentions and forgotten at the back.
Courses
Start with three things you can do today
How to stop wasting food at home
Buy, store and use food so less of it ends up in the bin.
Start by noticing what you actually throw away and why, then work on planning, shopping, storage, date labels and using leftovers. Each step is fitted to your household size and routine, with food safety kept separate from food quality throughout.
Type this when Cadence asks what you want to learn
I want to stop throwing away so much food at home. I buy with good intentions, then find wilted vegetables and forgotten leftovers at the back of the fridge every week, and I would like a routine that saves money and waste.
Change any word so it fits your situation. The course is built from what you type and a few setup questions.
Start today
Four things you can do before the course exists.
Useful on their own. The course is for when you want the whole skill, not just the first move.
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Shop from a use-first list
Before shopping, check the fridge, freezer and cupboards and write down what needs using up. Plan the next meals around those items, then add quantities to the list, for example 'salad leaves, enough for two lunches'.
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Put food where it lasts
Keep the fridge at 5°C or below (US guidance says 40°F or below). Store milk on a shelf, not in the door, which is the warmest part. Keep bananas, apples and avocados away from other produce, since the ethylene they release speeds ripening.
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Read the date that matters
In the UK, a use-by date is about safety: eat, cook or freeze the food by then. A best before date is about quality, so food is usually safe after it but may not be at its best. Elsewhere, check your national food safety guidance, because label rules differ.
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Freeze before it is too late
Freeze bread, sliced fruit, meat or leftovers you will not eat in time, labelled with the contents and date. UK guidance is to use frozen food that had a use-by date within 24 hours of defrosting it.
Sources: US EPA: preventing wasted food at home, with planning and storage tips; GOV.UK: best before and use-by dates. Practical examples are starting points, not promised results.
- Best for
- Environment & climate
- Prerequisites
- None. Bring the situation you have.
- Course length
- 7 to 30 lessons, sized to your goal
- Lesson pace
- About 10 minutes a day
- Format
- Read it, or play the audio
- Access
- Available on the App Store, with early features and Android testing access
Before the course is built
Setup asks about your situation first.
Lesson 1 opens on the moment you describe, and the examples use your role. For this request, expect questions like these.
- How many people do you shop and cook for, and how often?
- What do you throw away most: vegetables, bread, leftovers, or dairy?
- Where do you shop, and how often do you go?
Right for now
If any of this sounds familiar, start here.
You cook for one or two
Pack sizes never match your meals.
You want to save money
And food waste looks like the easiest place to start.
Course arc
Where the course goes, in order.
Cadence writes the lessons for you, so the exact path follows your answers. This is the ground a course built from this sentence covers.
01 / 06Your waste audit
Tracking what goes in the bin for a week and why.
Planning and shopping
Checking what you have, planning meals and buying quantities that fit.
Storage that works
Fridge zones, humidity drawers, ripening gases and the freezer.
Date labels
Use-by, best before and sell-by, and which ones concern safety.
Cooking with leftovers
Soups, frittatas and other flexible meals for odds and ends.
What cannot be saved
Composting or food waste collection for what is left.
What changes
What you will be able to do, and what you will stop believing.
You will be able to
Find your pattern
Identify which foods you waste and the reason behind each.
Plan and store better
Shop to a plan and store food where it lasts longest.
Use what you have
Turn leftovers and odds and ends into meals, safely.
Ideas this course corrects
Food past its best before date is unsafe
In UK labelling, best before is about quality and use-by is about safety. Do not eat food after its use-by date unless it was cooked or frozen by then.
Bulk deals always save money
A multibuy only saves money if you use all of it before it spoils.
Course questions
What to know before you start.
How to stop wasting food at home: what can I do today?
Shop from a use-first list. Before shopping, check the fridge, freezer and cupboards and write down what needs using up. Plan the next meals around those items, then add quantities to the list, for example 'salad leaves, enough for two lunches'. Put food where it lasts. Keep the fridge at 5°C or below (US guidance says 40°F or below). Store milk on a shelf, not in the door, which is the warmest part. Keep bananas, apples and avocados away from other produce, since the ethylene they release speeds ripening. Read the date that matters. In the UK, a use-by date is about safety: eat, cook or freeze the food by then. A best before date is about quality, so food is usually safe after it but may not be at its best. Elsewhere, check your national food safety guidance, because label rules differ. Freeze before it is too late. Freeze bread, sliced fruit, meat or leftovers you will not eat in time, labelled with the contents and date. UK guidance is to use frozen food that had a use-by date within 24 hours of defrosting it.
Is this a fixed course?
No. Cadence builds the course when you type the sentence and answer a few setup questions, so the lessons follow your situation. This page describes what a course built from this request covers. You see the whole path before Lesson 1.
Who is this course for?
Start by noticing what you actually throw away and why, then work on planning, shopping, storage, date labels and using leftovers. Each step is fitted to your household size and routine, with food safety kept separate from food quality throughout. It sits under Environment & climate in the Ideas & discovery part of the library.
Do I need any prior experience?
No. Setup asks what you already know and where you want to use it, and the course starts from there. Bring a real situation if you have one; the examples are built around it.
How long does it take?
Courses run 7 to 30 lessons of about 10 minutes, sized to what you asked for. One lesson a day is the intended pace, and you can go faster. Lessons can be read or played as audio.
Does this course award a certificate or degree?
No. Cadence is for practical self-learning and does not award accredited degrees or professional certification.
Start today
Type it, answer a few questions, open Lesson 1.
The sentence to type
I want to stop throwing away so much food at home. I buy with good intentions, then find wilted vegetables and forgotten leftovers at the back of the fridge every week, and I would like a routine that saves money and waste.