TV chef Hazel Thomas cooked up a festive feast to tantalise the tastebuds of shoppers in Cross Hands.
The ‘Food for Thought’ event at Cross Hands Co-op was organised by Carmarthenshire County Council’s waste awareness team.
Hazel, who is a regular face on S4C, showed shoppers how our Christmas leftovers can be used to make another meal.
Dishes included turkey noodle soup, turkey mango and lime salad, quick tomato and lentil soup, Spanish omelette and fruit skewers with a toffee sauce.
Waste officers gave lots of hints and tips on how residents could cut down on their food waste and Radio Carmarthenshire were also there to broadcast the event to the rest of the county.
Figures show that a family of four throws away £50 worth of food every month. But given the size of the typical Christmas shopping trolley, the amount of money we waste during December is likely to be much more. A few simple changes however can make a big difference to your festive food bills and the environment.
Council waste minimisation/recycling officer Karen McNeil said:
“Simple measures like writing, and sticking to, food shopping lists, adopting better portion control, and storing food correctly will all help avoid food waste helping to cut the cost of Christmas. And remember, there’s no need to panic buy huge stocks of food, most of the supermarkets will be open again on Boxing Day!”
Residents are also being reminded to recycle as much as possible. As Christmas Day and New Year’s Day fall on a Saturday this year, there are no changes to refuse/recycling collections in Carmarthenshire. This means your waste will be collected on its usual day throughout the festive period.
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Philip Hughes said: “With all the eating, drinking and merry-making we tend to produce a lot more rubbish at this time of the year which is why it’s more important than ever to recycle our waste properly.”
For further information visit www.carmarthenshire.gov.uk
