Japanese method for tidy, waste-free fridge

Researchers in Tokyo are testing simple organizational techniques to help people clear cluttered fridges and reduce food waste. All you need to get started is some tape and a few stickers.

Have you ever opened your refrigerator and felt overwhelmed? Perhaps you struggled to find anything to eat amid a jumble of jams, pickles, spreads, and half-empty condiments. Or you were unsure which foil-wrapped leftovers to prioritize. Maybe you even discovered a long-forgotten container with foul contents that you threw the entire thing away. If any of this sounds familiar, you are not alone. “Quite often, the reason food goes bad and gets wasted is because you forget about it in the fridge and find it rotten later,” says Kohei Watanabe, a waste management researcher at Teikyo University in Tokyo.

Household food loss is a global problem. In the UK, about 60% of all food waste comes from homes, and in the US, 40-50%. Japan has similar statistics, with 47% of the country’s 5.2 million tonnes of edible food waste coming from private kitchens in 2021. Common reasons for this waste include food getting “lost” inside fridges, misinterpreting food date labels, impulse buying, and poor planning during supermarket visits. Japan faces even greater pressure to reduce food waste because it imports nearly two-thirds of its food.

Researchers Okayama and Watanabe have been exploring the reasons why edible food ends up in the bin and are testing fridge-tidying techniques. In 2018, Okayama surveyed more than 500 Tokyo residents to understand why they discarded food. Many people assumed fresh produce had gone bad or that processed foods would no longer taste good. There was also confusion between “best-by” and “use-by” dates. “Best-by” refers to the date before which a product is at its peak quality, while “use-by” indicates the date that ensures safe consumption.

To reduce waste, they proposed simple fridge organization techniques. They suggested creating a shelf or section for soon-to-expire food, using tape or stickers to label it, and making it visible with a transparent tray. They also distributed stickers with a message apologizing to the food for not eating it, encouraging mindful disposal.

By implementing these techniques, residents in an experimental area saw a 20% reduction in food waste. This approach shows promise in helping people manage their fridges better and reduce food waste.

Re-reported from the article originally published in BBC.