My Plate
Design a healthy plate using the five food groups.
KITCHEN WASTE ANALYSIS: CONSEQUENCES OF FOOD SYSTEMS
Look through a virtual kitchen trash can and improve your real home’s discarding methods.
About the Activity
In this activity, you will sort through a virtual kitchen trash can to learn how to properly sort waste. You’ll also see how proper food disposal, good planning, and a good waste management system can also save money and reduce environmental impact.
Grades: 7-10
Topic: Food Systems, Civic Engagement
Estimated Time: 30 minutes
Brought to you by New York State 4-H, Cornell Cooperative Extension, and USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
Supplies
The only supply you need for this activity is the interactive content on this page!
Activity Steps
Use this interactive activity to learn about what food products you consume, and what happens to what’s left over when you’re done.
Reflection Questions
Bonus questions after sorting through your kitchen trash
- How can we help apply what we learned to reducing food waste in our community?
- What are the reasons that you throw away food? How can you reduce food waste in your own home?
- What will the future be like if a large amount of food and food packaging continues to be wasted?
Investigate and Explore
Take what you've learned to the next level to learn more and explore the possibilities.
Now that you’ve learned about kitchen trash, try this bonus activity in which you can create your very own composting bag.
Reusing a Reclosable Bag to Make Compost
Adapted from Caroline Boutard-Hunt, CCE Yates County
Supplies
- A medium size plastic bag (reuse 1 gallon reclosable bags)
- Garden or kitchen waste such as grass clippings, tea leaves, coffee grounds, or chopped up fruit peels
- Shredded brown stuff such as pine needles or dry leaves
- Garden soil
- Alfalfa pellets (rabbit food)
- Measuring cups and spoons: ½ cup, 1 cup, 1 tablespoon
Directions
- Put half cup of shredded green materials in your bag.
- Add half cup of shredded brown materials.
- Add one cup of garden soil. You need soil, as it will contain the tiny decomposers that will do the composting work.
- Add 1 tablespoon of alfalfa pellets and 2 tablespoons of water.
- Seal the bag and shake well.
- Squeeze the bag once a day to mix things up. Every other day leave the bag open.
If all goes well, you will get decomposed organic matter in about six weeks to use as compost!
Related Activities
If you enjoyed these activities, you can find additional activities on 4-H at Home.
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No endorsement of these supporters' products or services is granted or implied by 4‑H. This work is supported by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, AFRI - Education and Workforce Development project 2021-67037-33376.9
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