Avoid food waste by knowing how to buy and store it at home!
An important tip, when you are at the market, leave to buy the fruits and vegetables last, avoiding further deterioration.
Food Selection
- Always prefer seasonal fruits, as well as being more economical, they preserve nutrients better and are tastier;
- They must not have softened and moldy parts or shells;
- Softened pulp with mold or any change in the smell and characteristic color of the food;
- Withered leaves, roots and stems;
- Perforations or wrinkling;
- When buying tomatoes, try to vary between ripe ones for immediate consumption and green ones for later consumption. This way there will always be tomatoes ready to use and you won't have to buy them every day.
- Banana peel with brown spots are ripe, and slightly green bananas ripen in a few days at room temperature;
- Select eggs with the shell intact, without cracks or dirt.
Transporting purchases to the house
- Carefully place purchases, separating fruits and vegetables from other products;
- Avoid leaving it exposed to the sun, near cleaning and personal hygiene products.
Conservation
- Fruits and vegetables must be stored in a cool, clean place, without direct exposure to sunlight and protected from insects;
- Refrigeration prolongs its conservation.
How to store in the refrigerator
- Place vegetables and fruits on the middle shelves, leaving the first shelves for ready-made foods, avoiding contamination;
- Vegetables should be washed close to the time of consumption;
- Vegetables must be stored in their own bags, avoiding direct contact with the air inside the refrigerator, as the leaves burn, lose their color, texture and especially their nutrients;
- Vegetables, if wrapped in plastic film or air-free plastic packaging, can last up to a month in the refrigerator;
- Fruits can be washed under running water before storing;
- The egg can be stored inside or outside the refrigerator. Inside the refrigerator it increases its shelf life, but it must be removed from cardboard or Styrofoam packaging and kept in plastic packaging on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. They should only be washed before consuming them.
