1 . If you’re a teenager, you are in a very powerful position. Starting good money habits now will put you ahead for the rest of your life. Here are money tips for you.

Understand the power of time.

You probably aren’t making a ton of money right now, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is time.     1     Let’s look at an example: At the end of your summer job, you have $1000. You invest it at a rate of return of 5%. At the end of those 50 years, you will have $11,467.49.

Start a money saving habit.

If you start the habit of saving money now, that habit will always be with you. Every dollar you get, whether it’s a gift, an allowance, or pay from a job, get into the habit of saving a part of it. Half of it would be ideal.     2     The older you get, the harder it can seem to save even 10% of your money.

    3    

There is so much information available on the Internet. You can find articles that will teach you how to make $100 fast. There are also so many personal finance books to choose from to learn about where to start. You can talk to your parents for advice on money management, too.

Avoid FOMO.

FOMO is fear of missing out on all the fun.     4     It’s important, though, to give up what you want now for what you want most. What you want now is to take the money you made at your summer job and go on Spring Break. What you want most is to graduate debt free or to be able to quit a job you hate because you have a big emergency fund to see you through to your next job. You may not like it when you’re eighteen.     5    

Thank you for your listening.

4 . Every week, Liu Fang, a 38-year-old media worker in Beijing, goes to a store specializing in selling near-expired(快过期的) food and returns with a bag of snacks or drinks.

“The price tags on these goods have caught my eye. They are often _______ at 10 percent to 30 percent of the market price,” Liu said. “More importantly, most of them are from big _______. Why wouldn’t I love them?”

Liu is among the _______ number of Chinese people who enjoy buying near-expired food at much _______ prices. According to the latest report, the near-expired food industry had a _______ size of over 30 billion yuan in 2020. Young consumers aged between 26 and 35 _______ 47.8 percent.

Unlike the traditional _______ that buying such goods is embarrassing, more and more young people regard it as a kind of sustainable consumption that can help _______ food waste.

Indeed, food waste is a great _______ for China and other countries. According to a 2020 report, about 18 billion kilograms of food is wasted every year in China’s urban catering industry(餐饮业).

As people’s lives improved greatly, many began to make or ________ more food than could be consumed, CGTN reported. But the trend of buying near-expired food may ________ that the Chinese virtue of frugality(节约)is ________ a comeback.

“I’ve been very frugal all my life. Living ________ a hard time of hunger(1959-61), I’m used to saving every ________ and every penny,” Li Mei, a retired woman born in the 1950s, told CGTN. “I’m happy to see more young people, who used to ________ extravagantly(奢侈地), joining our ranks.”

5 . Different Approaches to Reducing Food Waste

Food plays a key role in people’s life. While many people in poor communities suffer from a shortage of food, a large amount of food is wasted in the rest of the world.     1     Here are some tips on how to reduce food waste.

Learn to store food. Not sure how to keep those greens from wilting overnight?

Can’t keep your tomatoes fresh for more than a day or two? Do your research on food storage and you’ll get the rewards. Not sure where to start?     2    

Use it all.     3     For example, leave the skin on carrots and potatoes (The skins actually have a ton of valuable nutrients!), save the beet greens for a salad, and don’t throw away the outer skin of oranges!

    4     Many fruits and vegetables are thrown away because they aren’t “pretty” enough. Buying food that comes in a different shape, size or colour helps use up food that might be given up.

Understand best-before dates correctly. People often confuse best-before dates with expiry dates. The best-before date has nothing to do with the safety of the food.     5     So while the taste may not be that good, many food items are still safe to eat for many days beyond the best-before date.

Yours,

Li Hua

9 . While for many a chef, serving up the fanciest and most delicious meals is the ultimate aim, Rudolf Brand has an extra mission: fighting food waste. He believes that with his dishes, he can have a big impact: not just on people’s taste buds(味蕾), but also on their way of thinking about food—and food waste.

With 22 years of experience, including Michelin-starred restaurants in London and Amsterdam, he has seen a lot of food wasted in his career. So what is the best way to prevent this? For him, it really comes down to one essential thing: “Rather than thinking about what you want to cook, look at the remainder, what’s available, and then make a menu. This is what every chef should do.”

He’s clear on his solution: “Lose that fanciness, and look at the quality of the product and the flavor.” Rudolf explains. “There are too many chefs who are trying to be too fancy. They want to have only the biggest sea fish no matter what. Or they make a dish with only the heart of the cabbage, only using the most delicate leaves and then they throw away the rest.” He shakes his head at the idea of such waste.

He knows that one of his suppliers—a local farm—is left with a growing food mountain when top Michelin-starred chefs only buy the prized cuts of meat instead of ordering the entire leg. In just three or four weeks, the farm is left with 1,000 legs of lamb in the freezer. “And that’s just one supplier.” he says.

While other chefs will only accept the best from their suppliers, if something is smaller or damaged or has a few black bits, Rudolf is still going to use it. “Just because I’ll accept produce of a slightly lower quality doesn’t mean I’m going to serve less quality. It’s my job to turn that into good-quality food on the plate.” he says.

10 . It’s estimated that families in the UK create more than six million tonnes of food waste each year. With food prices rising, it’s a good time to become a food-waste fighter. Not only will it save money, it is good for the environment. After all, growing, packaging and transporting food uses a lot of Earth’s resources such as energy and water.     1    .

First, it’s a good idea to find out just how much food goes into your rubbish can. Keep a diary and note down the foods that get thrown most often, and why.

Planning meals for the week can save time and money.     2    . Bananas that are brown and soft can be baked into banana bread at the weekend. Potatoes and carrots last a long time if kept in a cool, dark place.

Cooking the correct size helps too. Weigh out pasta or rice you need before you cook it. Before you pile your plate, check how hungry you are.     3    .

It’s hard to keep track of food that’s gone to the back of the fridge. You could label a shelf an “Eat me first” spot for anything that has been there for a while.     4    . You can freeze leftovers in a sealed container for another day. But heat any leftovers put in a fridge thoroughly before eating.

    5    . Some UK supermarkets have taken “best before” dates off fruit and vegetables. This can encourage people to use their nose and eyes to work out if something is still fine to eat. Don’t forget to update your diary to see how much change you can make.