Saving money with Every Bite - Niluka shares her story
As a single mother, Niluka is always looking for ways to save money.
She’s a microbiology technician at Massey University, and as well as supporting her son, Niluka travels to Sri Lanka every year to visit her parents.
“The Every Bite programme is one way that I can start saving money. People might think it is only a little amount, but little things make a big difference.”
After taking part in the programme, Niluka was surprised to discover how much edible food she was throwing away.
“You never think about the amount of food that you waste, actually.
It surprised me that, without knowing, I was wasting food. During the programme they asked us to collect our food waste in an ice cream container, and mine was full of broccoli and the cauliflower stems. It's a big amount of food!”
But since taking part in Every Bite, Niluka’s habits have changed.
“I thought, no, I should not put those things into the waste - I can use them. I need to find a way. And do you know what I'm doing now? I'm cutting the stems into small pieces and adding them to the other vegetables in the meal.”
“Now from a broccoli or cauliflower there’s actually nothing, zero amount going to the compost bin. I'm using everything.”
Niluka Velathanthiri
Niluka enjoyed sharing food wisdom with other Every Bite participants too.
“There was a lady who was collecting seeds from a tomato on a paper towel and keeping them dry, and then growing them. So I collected some on a paper towel too, and I'm planning to put them into the seed mix this weekend to see whether they will grow.”
A few months after taking part in the programme, Niluka is still finding the Every Bite resources helpful.
“I’m still using the ‘eat me first’ label that they gave me. It's really good. Like, you know when you have leftovers in a box? I put the label on them so if my son opens the fridge, he knows that’s something we have to finish soon.”
Niluka has also shared some of the things she learned with her colleagues at work.
“I would talk about the Every Bite programme with my colleagues during morning tea time, and I put some leaflets onto the notice board too.
I had a chance to talk to the Massey University sustainability officer about the programme as well, so she can bring something to the university as a whole group. And actually, she contacted [Environment Network Manawatū], where Niluka took part in Every Bite] regarding a whole lot of programmes!”
Since taking part in Every Bite, Niluka has seen a real shift with the way she thinks about food.
“Now my habits have changed. I'm not wasting anything, I'm using all parts of the food, and I'm saving money.
It's a very good topic. Everybody anywhere should think about it, because food prices have gone up, and it's good to have a programme like this, giving a lot of tips.
I think there should be more programmes like this in the community.”
Every Bite is delivered by the Zero Waste Network in partnership with the Ministry for the Environment.
If you’d like to take part in upcoming programmes, register your interest here.