Using the Diary

How to use the food diary

You will receive your own unique link for the Food Diary online. You can use this on any device with an internet connection - mobile phones, tablets, laptops or desktop computers. If you prefer to record your food on paper, please let us know and we will send you the paper version.

You will use the Food Diary to record ALL of the food and drink discarded (thrown away, composted, poured down the drain, or fed to pets) in your household, including things you wouldn’t normally eat (chicken bones, vegetable scraps, etc.), as well as any food/drink you personally discard outside of the home. A list of the types of things you SHOULD include can be found here. You can make an entry each time you discard food, or use photos (see below) to collect info and make your entries at a later time.

Each time you make an entry, you will be asked a series of questions about the food or drink you are discarding.

If you are preparing an item or meal and have multiple inedible items, you can record those all together as one entry.

Important notes

Please weigh and record all of the food (including inedible food parts, e.g. banana peels, eggshells, and coffee grounds) and beverages you discard in your household for one week using the online diary link or the kitchen diary pages provided you, if you requested paper copies.

Additionally, we ask that you record any food/drink discarded outside of your home, either in the online diary or in the second section on each paper kitchen diary page, but you do not have to weigh it.

You can help us by filling out the kitchen diary as completely and accurately as possible. To help everyone in your household remember to record all of the food and drink that gets thrown away during the week, you may want to select one person to take the lead in your household. It is very important that you record ALL of the food and drink that is thrown away:

• By all the people in your household
• No matter what it is or why it is being discarded (even food that you would not normally eat such as fruit pits, bones, or vegetable peels)
• No matter where you discarded it (in your trash, curbside compost, put down the drain, fed to pets or animals, or composted in your backyard)
• No matter the amount being discarded (nothing is too small to measure)
• Do not include food purchased for the main intention of feeding animals.
• Don’t change how you usually prepare or discard food/drinks. If you would normally do a refrigerator or cupboard clean out during the week, do that.
• If anything unusual occurs in your weekly food-related activities (like you throw a party or eat out more than usual), please note that in the comments section.
• Any food discarded in your household trash or compost should be recorded as food disposed of in the household even if it was not prepared at home (for example: you should record leftovers from restaurants that are later discarded at home).
• If you did not discard any food/drink at home or outside of the home on a given day, please check the box that notes this.
• It is best to record discarded food/drink as it happens; however, you or other household members may want to set discarded food aside until you can record it in the kitchen diary. You can also take photos of it and refer to it later. Online diary users have the option of uploading these photos.

For those using the online diary:

• Describe any food/drink discarded in detail and fill out each question the online form guides you to enter. If there are many ingredients, please provide as much detail as possible (for example: one pan of homemade lasagna including two zucchini, ground beef, tomato sauce, and cheese). There is a question where you will be asked to provide as much detail as possible.
• You may re-use your link to make as many entries as needed; be sure to note the correct date for the entry.

For those using the paper diary:

• If you run out of room to record information, there are extra pages (10).
• Describe any food/drink discarded in detail and fill out the required boxes in each row of the kitchen diary. If there are many ingredients, please provide as much detail as possible (for example: one pan of homemade lasagna including two zucchini, ground beef, tomato sauce, and cheese).
• When checking the box that best describes the state of the food/drink when discarded, please see the definitions below. If none of them apply, please write the state of the food/drink in the “Other” box.
  • Unprepared (meaning it was not cooked or prepared – for example: a whole onion, bread slices, an orange, a block of cheese, canned beans)
  • Prepared, Cooked or Leftovers (meaning food was cooked or in the final state before eating – for example: salads, lasagna, sandwiches)
  • Inedible Parts (meaning these are items you would not normally eat – for example, egg shells, pits, peels, or coffee grounds)
  • Liquids – any liquid you would normally consume as a beverage
  • Other (for any other conditions the items were in)

Weighing your food

For all food and drink discarded at home, you will be asked to record the weight, using the provided scale (which is yours to keep). Please record ALL the food and drink that is discarded by all the people in your household, no matter what it is, why it is being discarded, or how small it is. For food and drink discarded outside of the home, you only need to record your own and will not be asked to enter the weight.

• Be sure the scale is set to ounces by pressing the UNIT button until "lb:oz" appears.
• Set the scale to zero with the empty container on it, by pressing the Power/TARE button.
• It may be easier to place the discarded food/drink in a separate container to weigh it, either the one we provided you or one of your choosing. If you use a container, tare it while empty, prior to weighing the food. You do not need to indicate that you used a container in this way for weighing.

Food in packaging

If your food or drink is in packaging that is not easy to remove before weighing it, then you do not need to remove the food/drink from the packaging and follow the guidelines below:

• If the discarded food was in glass, metal, or hard plastic when weighed, estimate the size of the packaging (dimensions or volume) and note the type of packing in the comments.
• Do not record lightweight packaging such as plastic wrap or paper packaging in the door diary, as these materials are much lighter than the weight of the food/drink

Adding a picture

• Pictures can be an easy way to save info to enter later, especially using a smart phone with a camera. If you don’t have time to make an entry , you can simply put the food on your scale (not required if you are not at home) and photograph the item and its weight. Once you find time you can make your diary entry and upload the photo from your phone.
• Please use a reference item (for size) in your photo if the food is not photographed on the scale, such as a pen, fork, or quarter.
• If you do not want to include a photo, simply move on to the following question, "What is it?"

Comments

You may have comments about the food being discarded, which you may leave in the comments field at the end of the diary entry. Specifically, please note if the food being discarded is part of a fridge or pantry "clean out" or any other unusual circumstances surrounding your entry.

The diary questions

1. Did you dispose of any food today? Select yes to make a diary entry. If there is a day where you and your household does not get rid of any food, select no and then please explain why this occurred in the comments field.

• Yes
• No

2. What is the date? You may select the date on the calendar or enter the date in the following format: xx-xx-2017.

3. Where was the food disposed of? Did you get rid of the food at home or somewhere else?

• At home
• Outside of the home

4. Was the food from breakfast, lunch, dinner, or not part of a meal? Choose the meal that the food was a part of or select not part of a meal.

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
• Not part of a meal

5. Would you like to add a photo? Click the box if you have a photo to upload or would like to take a photo.

6. Please provide a detailed description of the item. Use this space to give a detailed description of the food or drink [including inedible parts]. Examples: Apple core, leftover chicken breast, or pizza with cheese, tomato sauce, pepperoni, and olives.

7. How much did it weigh? (In pounds and ounces) With the provided scale and tubs, please weigh the item(s) and record the weight that is displayed on the scale. The first field is for pounds (if you are weighing a heavier item) and the second is for ounces. This question will only be asked for food that was discarded at home.

8. Where did it come from? This question will only be asked for food discarded outside of the home.

• Restaurant or cafeteria
• Grocery store or market
• Brought from home
• Other ____________________

9. Was it? Select one that best describes the item(s)

• Unprepared food - (ie. bread slices, an orange, block of cheese, canned beans)
• Prepared, cooked, or leftovers - (ie. macaroni salad, a sandwich, leftover pasta)
• Inedible parts - (Use this option for items you would not normally eat, such as egg shells, avocado peels, or
• Liquids - (any liquid you would normally consume as a beverage)
• Other _______________________ (please write in any other conditions the item(s) were in.

10. Reason? Select the reason that best describes why you are getting rid of the item(s) rather than eating it.

• Past date on the label
• Moldy or spoiled
• Don’t like or tired of eating
• Worry that it might cause illness
• Too little to save
• Not good as leftovers
• Unable to save or store (This option will be available for food discarded outside of the home, for situation when you are simply unable to save leftover food.)
• Other ______________________

11. What happened? Please choose the option that best explains why the food was not eaten.

• Bought too much
• Made too much
• Lost track of in the fridge or cupboard
• Too busy
• Didn't know what to do with it or how to use
• Other_____________________

12. Why was too much bought? If you indicated that you bought too much, this question asks why. Please choose the primary one.

• It was on sale or discounted
• The package was too large
• Don’t know
• Other _______________________

13. Why was too much made? If you indicated that too much was made, this question asks why. Please choose the primary one.

• Made a larger batch to eat throughout the week
• Thought others would eat it
• Made too much on accident
• Don’t know
• Other _______________________

14. Where did it go? What was the final destination for the item?

• Trash
• Compost picked up at curb
• Home or other compost
• Down the drain
• Fed to pets or animals
• Other ______________________

15. Comments: Use this field to make any comments about your entry.

16. Do you have another entry to make? If you'd like to make another entry you can do so by clicking yes, or by clicking the link for your diary that was emailed to you.