The pantry or food storage cabinets are amongst the most heavily used spaces by everyone in a home.  Whether you have a large walk-in pantry, a pantry cupboard or have no pantry at all, maximizing function and storage is key.  Read on for my top 5 tips to make the most of your food storage space.

Benefits of Organized Food Storage 

Whatever your food storage space, the benefits of keeping it organized are the same:

1) You find things quickly (saving time);

2) You eliminate purchasing duplicates and food waste (saving money);

3) It’s easier for EVERYONE to put groceries away and to retrieve and return ingredients when needed (saving energy).

And all of these save frustration daily!  So lets get to my top 5 tips for pantry and food storage and organization.

1) Decant

I know decanting isn’t for everyone, but it really is a BIG space saver. Just check it out:

Decanting also makes it fast and easy to grab what you want and to keep track of what have and what you’re running low on.  You’ll never reach into an empty box of granola bars again!

If the extra effort of decanting doesn’t appeal to you, consider doing it for easy items like pre-packaged snacks.  It takes much less time and effort than other items and you’ll STILL save a lot of space.

Jars, containers, and bins to decant in come in all different aesthetics, sizes and price points and can be found at the dollar store, online and anywhere home goods are sold.  For a free option, repurpose used jars from your groceries.

Bonus Tip: Write the expiry date on the back of the container with a chalk marker or a piece of washi tape and a pen.

2) Contain

You don’t have to decant your items to contain them!  Just put the boxes, bags, jars and cans in baskets and bins by category.

The baskets and bins keep like items together AND separate from other types of items.  They also make retrieval and return of things easy and provide limits for the categories they’re holding.

Because different categories of items aren’t mixing, it’s faster and easier to keep track of what you have and what you’re running low on, reducing duplicate purchases and the amount of food expiring on your shelves.

Whatever your space, use baskets and bins to contain pasta, grains, bagged lentils/beans, pre-packaged snacks, spices, tea, coffee and everything else you can!

Baskets and bins also come in all different sizes, colours, textures and price points making it easy to find ones that match your functional, aesthetic and budgetary needs.

3) Go Vertical: 

Use every inch of vertical space you can in your pantry and cupboards by going vertical. My go to products for going vertical are shelf risers, tiered risers and stacking bins.

All these products instantly create more storage and increase visibility and accessibility. You’ll never again have to shuffle items around to get what you want or lose things in the back of cupboards or shelves!

Finally, don’t forget about the back of your door and open wall space.  Use a hanging shoe pocket, a hanging rack, or adhesive caddies to make use of this valuable space to store items like spices, seasoning packets, pre-packaged snacks, water bottles and so much more.

4) Turntables: 

Turntables improve the function and accessibility of deep, awkward pantry corners, hard-to-reach recessed sides of cabinets and standard cabinets too.

They work their magic by allowing you to see and access all your cooking oils, cans, jars, spices, snacks and wherever else you keep on them, with one easy spin.  No more shuffling everything around to get what you want!

Like all the other items mentioned here, turntables come in all different sizes, finishes and price points.  Click here to learn how to you can use turntables to organize your entire home.

5) Labels: 

Last, but not least, are labels.

Labels are an easy system that let everyone know where to find and return items too.  This is particularly important as pantries and food storage cupboards are generally used by EVERYONE in a home!

Labels save time and increase the chances of staying organized.  In a quick glance, everyone knows what’s inside a bin or basket.  And when it’s fast and easy for everyone to find and return items, the chances of the system lasting are increased.

Which leads to the final point: labels reduce frustration! When it’s easy to find what you need, when you need it, you’re not frustrated or stressed searching for items you know you have but can’t find. 

For some of my favourite labelling options a all different budget points, click here.

Conclusion

Whether you have a walk-in pantry, a pantry cupboard or have no pantry at all, maximizing food storage space is key.  These 5 tips to organize your pantry or cupboards will not only save space, but also save time, money, energy and frustration daily!

Happy Organizing!