Fridge Inventory: How to Keep Track of What You’ve Got.
Don’t let good food go to waste! Keeping a fridge inventory so you can
keep track of what you’ve got — and use it before it loses its freshness.
Whether you store lots of leftovers or buy fresh food, using a fridge
inventory will help you to keep track of what you have so that you can use it
up within good time.
Why do I need an inventory?
Taking a food inventory is the first step to meal
planning and shopping your kitchen. Keeping good
track of what’s in your fridge with an inventory can help you save money, eat
well, and avoid food waste.
How do I keep track of the food I have in my fridge?
There are several ways to track your fridge inventory.
Apps: There
are several different apps that you can download (either for
free/paid) that will help you track what you have in the fridge or freezer. A
number of these work by having you scan the barcode on products. Whilst this is
great if you have a lot of packaged foods, but not so helpful if you’re
freezing: meat from the butchers or handmade meals. Make sure to check whether
the app allows for the manual entry of custom items.
On a dry-erase board: You can write your fridge
and freezer inventory on a magnetic dry-erase board that attaches to
your fridge/freezer or on a regular board that hangs on the kitchen
wall.
Paper Inventory: Personally, I like using
a paper template. I laminate them and put them in my Home Management
Binder. Here’s one I made for my kitchen – if you want a FREE
copy of the Fridge Inventory feel free to download it.
Here’s what a Fridge Inventory Sheet can look like:
Why not download the matching Freezer inventory also?
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
If your fridge is full, it would be best to empty the fridge completely
to understand exactly what you have. The details you should include
are
- Date the item was purchased
- Item – What it is and how
many portions
- Use by date
- The quantity you have
Cross out, and replace the number when you use items in your inventory,
this way you will always know how many you have left, without having to dig
around the fridge. As long as you remember to cross off the item
each time you use something from the fridge, you’ll have a great record of
what’s left to eat.
You can keep this inventory on the front of your fridge or freezer or in
your Home
Management Binder
This is not only helpful with meal planning, but it will help you make
good use of things on sale, as you will know exactly what you have and what you
need.
Do you use an inventory? Is it something that you plan to do? Let me know in the comments below.