It’s fair to say, I’m a bit obsessed with my fridge. My weekly routine of organising the food shop into glass containers is something I look forward to doing. Aside from making it look good, can fridge organisation help reduce food waste? What goes on each shelf and are there some foods that should never be kept in there? Joining me to answer all these questions, is home economist at TUS Midwest, Agnes Bouchier-Hayes. I always sort my food into separate glass containers to keep in the fridge. While it does look neat and tidy, does it help keep food fresher for longer? Well, according to Agnes those glass containers can help with this: “The glass absorbs the cold, so when you open and close the fridge, you are keeping the food at a more constant temperature.” Agnes points out that there are a lot of foods that should not be taken out of the packaging they come in: “Plastic is not great. However, there are small laser holes in packaging that reduces the oxygen exchange. When you take something out of the packaging, you are opening it up to the environment and to the oxygen. Whereas when it is kept in its plastic packaging...[food] is more stable and you will get longer out of it.” We also discuss why it is so important to keep your fridge clean and I ask the all-important question, should eggs be kept in or out of the fridge? For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and [email protected]. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.

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