Five festive season food waste tips:

1 In the lead-up to Christmas, do some clutter control in your fridge and freezer. See what you can use up in order to make space for storing leftovers.

2 If you have a local fruit and vege market, let this guide what happens in your kitchen over the festive period. What’s abundant and cheap? What might last a few weeks? What can you pickle, freeze, bathe in olive oil etc to make now and enjoy later?

3 Collect up any containers or jars you don’t mind parting with and have them on hand so you can send guests away with leftovers. They’ll be happy to have lunch sorted for the next day.

4 Be sensible with storage. As the weather gets warmer, it’s easy to let fruit bowl inhabitants slowly soften, berries deteriorate or tomatoes grow mouldy. Roasting is a handy way to use up ageing fruit or veg. Roasted fruits and berries can be eaten with ice cream, yoghurt or in cakes, and veges can be thrown into frittatas or salads.

5 Keep a packet of rice on hand to make a tasty leftovers brekkie. A couple of years ago I woke up on New Year’s Day to a slightly sore head, a full house and a random selection of ingredients to make breakfast for 12 hungry guests. A packet of rice saved the day and a motley crew of leftovers formed a delicious fried rice. Slice up leftovers and fry them off with a couple of onions, some garlic, sesame oil and ginger. Add a few cups of cooked rice and fry until crispy. Top with a fried egg or a dollop of hot sauce. Ideally both!