Do you remember what’s in your fridge? New TikTok research reveals the reasons Australians are still wasting food

SYDNEY, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ – From forgotten tomatoes in the fridge to stale bread on the kitchen bench, food waste has become routine for Aussie households, with new TikTok research revealing 40% bin unused food or ingredients at least weekly. This can amount to households wasting up to 113kgs of food a year*.

Despite good intentions to reuse ingredients, TikTok’s research reveals:

• While 46% plan another meal using leftover ingredients and 39% use them if they remember, one in five still throw ingredients away. Meanwhile, 28% forget what’s in the fridge, 26% forget how long ingredients have been there and 17% let leftovers go bad.
• Despite rising grocery costs putting pressure on Australian families, households with kids are the most likely to waste food, with over half (51%) sending food to the bin every week, versus households without kids (36%).
• Leftovers have an image problem with young people and parents. One in five (20%) 18-24’s feel embarrassed to eat leftovers in public, with this feeling higher among parents (26%) who feel embarrassed or avoid doing so altogether.

In response, TikTok’s Leave No Crumbs is calling on Australians to treat unused ingredients or leftovers as the source of inspiration for their next recipe. With more than 9.7 million #FoodTok posts globally, TikTok is already a force in shaping modern food culture.

From reviving forgotten ingredients like #cottage cheese (500m+ views) and #sardines (290m+ views), to making recipes like #HaileyBieberMeatballs and #fetapasta (1.1 billion+ views) viral sensations, TikTok has become a destination for food inspiration, money-saving hacks and new recipes.

Channelling that same energy, TikTok now turns up the heat on forgotten ingredients, showing Aussies just how much potential is already sitting in the fridge or the fruit bowl, you just need to know what to do with it.

Reducing food waste is a global challenge, but change often starts at home, according to Monique Llewellyn, National Campaign Manager for Australia’s leading food rescue organisation, OzHarvest. "Tackling food waste at home is the single most impactful action each of us can do to combat climate change.

"When life gets busy, it’s easy to waste food rather than work out what to do with it. At OzHarvest we’re inspiring people to ‘use it up’ which is why it’s great to see creators sharing easy ideas to use up what’s already in the fridge. Small habits really do make a big difference."

At Tuesday Night Dinner, we Leave No Crumbs

Businesswoman, mother of three (plus one turtle and 5 dogs) and TikTok icon Krissy Marsh knows how to entertain while making the most of what she has. Her Tuesday Night Dinners, a weekly family tradition, have become a TikTok favourite, with some videos amassing over 1 million views.

But it’s not just glamour and caviar; at the heart of Krissy’s approach is a deep passion for a more sustainable way to cook and, importantly, a commitment to ensuring nothing goes to waste, including never letting a guest leave Tuesday Dinner without a container of leftovers.

To ensure that food ends up on the table and not in the bin, Krissy has curated her Tuesday Night dinner menu using some of Australia’s most wasted ingredients. This includes overripe tomatoes, (tomatoes are the worst culprit making up 34% of total wasted vegetables annually**) prawn heads and wilted greens used to create stock used in the vodka pasta sauce (over a fifth of the vegetables that end up in the bin are leafy greens**), and giving stale bread a second life for homemade breadcrumbs to create her famous chicken schnitzel (bread makes up 86% of the bakery items thrown away by households**).

"Food has always been at the heart of my home and there’s nothing I love more than a full table surrounded by everyone I love, enjoying great food. But for me, a great dinner is one where nothing goes to waste, and this menu proves that using what you’ve got doesn’t have to be complicated, it’s actually really easy," said Krissy.

"I’ve been having so much fun since joining TikTok. Not only do I get to share the things I’m passionate about, but I’ve also learnt so much from the TikTok community. The thing I love about the TikTok community is that you get real time feedback, tips and tricks."

From the For You feed to the fridge, Leave No Crumbs serves up easy tips and recipes to make the most of what’s already at home, saving money and reducing food waste.

Find all this content and more by searching #TikTokNoCrumbs on TikTok. If you’re looking for expert tips and resources to help fight food waste, visit OzHarvest website or on TikTok (@OzHarvest).

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