There was a comment on HN a while that really made me think, essentially saying it's better to always have healthy food available, even if you sometimes have to throw some out, than to have to resort to less healthy processed or fast food because you don't have readily available healthy food.

Get a compost pile or wormery or chickens (or, here, we have council-provided food waste bins). Nature creates vast amounts of ‘waste’ and excess. One tree produces ten thousand acorns and maybe zero will germinate. Waste food matter is energy and future soil, it’s not ‘bad’ per se.

Don't you eat your leftovers? I don't think we've ever thrown out food, but sometimes we have to eat the same exact thing for quite a few days.

You've never thrown out food? I'd be curious to find out what percentage of people can honestly make that claim. Sometimes you make something that doesn't turn out very well...with the best of intentions, you put it in the refrigerator intending to finish it off, but after a week or so it's just not edible anymore.

When I was living alone as a single person it was pretty easy for me to avoid wasting food. I knew my own habits and my own level of hunger so I was able to effectively control my food buying and preparation. Since moving in with my wife, however, and especially since having kids it has been harder and harder to accurately predict our food requirements and minimize waste. I'm sure the larger the population a single entity is providing food for the harder this line is to walk.

Nope. I'm a great cook and baker. I've always eaten everything I've made. But I don't make more food until I've finished off what I've already prepared.

There usually isn’t enough left for a full meal

In my family, I’m often surprised by what cool idea they have to reuse most food left over by combining multiple left overs or a left over with something else fresh. It opened my eyes that this is not a fixed state but what you do with it.

I find it pretty easy to either eat all the food, or leave enough for a work day lunch. Leaving half a portion uneaten just doesn't happen.

Sounds like lunch for the next day. Or a late night snack.