Teaching children about food waste: Part 1
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EmailWhy should early childcare centers and other childcare programs think about food waste, and what role do they play in managing their own food use?
Food waste in early childcare programs does not get as much attention as food waste in K-12 schools. Most discussions on how to reduce food waste with children under five years of age focus on what to do at home. Yet, ask any early childhood professional about how to reduce food waste with children – ask the teachers, ask the chefs – even ask any parent with a young child enrolled in a childcare program, more likely than not, your question will lead to conversations about getting a toddler to finish their food and what happens to the food when they don’t finish it. What factors lead to food waste in early childcare centers? To answer that, let’s look for habits inside and outside of homes and in early childcare center environments to understand why there is food waste.
Why Food Waste?
Food waste in the U.S. effects everyone by impacting sustainability, budgeting, and education. Michigan’s 2024 Food Waste Roadmap reports that food waste costs Michigan billions of dollars. Food waste is filling up landfills more than any other material and contributing dramatically to carbon emissions. For a state that has strategic goals related to improving food and nutrition, lowering pollution, and reducing food waste specifically, the topic of food waste is something that early childcare centers should think about.
More people are recognizing that everyone can play a role in food waste reduction. For example, public service organizations can create policies that promote better community habits. This is where early childcare centers come in. The early years are important for developing healthy food preferences which directly reduce food waste. Programs and staff can help young children and their families build good habits early on that set the stage for later education and behavior.
Evidence shows that childcare centers waste a large amount of food. A study in Australia found that, “food waste fills almost 30% of the average waste bin of a typical childcare centre or preschool.” Within the U.S., Sustainable Agricultural Research and Education cites that, “more than 66% of U.S. preschoolers attend a childcare setting daily, and up to 40% of the milk served there is wasted.”
Food Management Practices in Childcare Environments
Why is food being wasted in early childhood center environments? The picky eating habits of children may be one thing to consider. Yet, childcare centers also play a role in introducing food to children in a way that encourages them to try and enjoy it. One U.S. study found that preschools following healthy food policies do not have higher food waste. This helps debunk myths that young children are wasting food because they just do not like healthy menus. Looking beyond children's eating habits, food waste might just be about how food is planned, prepared, and served. For inspiration, we can look to Australia’s Environment Protection Authority which identified three key childcare practices that lead to food waste:
- Poor menu planning
- Making too much food
- Incorrect storage practices
Another study compared food management strategies of early childcare centers with different waste outcomes and found that better policies, management, and parental or family involvement significantly reduced waste. What does this mean for childcare programs? Read "Teaching Children Food Waste? Part 2" for strategic tips on how early childcare centers can start planning better food management practices.
