Ten pantry hacks for staying organized and fresh

1. Follow the first in, first out rule

Once you have cleared out your pantry cupboard and you are ready to start with your new organisational system, start with making sure that everything has a designated space. This is important as it will be much easier to keep everything organized if you and your household know where everything should be. After that, it will be easy to implement the first in, first out rule. To follow this rule, older items in your pantry cupboard should be in the front and newer items should be placed in the back. This will make it much easier to use up items before they reach their expiry date and to see more clearly what you have left, and when you need to buy more.

2. Label everything

Labels, made with a label maker or a simple DIY permanent marker, can make it much easier to keep track of what you have, how old things are, and can help you keep organised and keep everything in their designated spaces and in the correct order for the first in first out rule. If you are using a permanent marker, a little bit of rubbing alcohol or hand sanitizer on a cotton ball can clean the permanent marker right off. This can make it easy to repurpose containers and add new labels.

3. Keep track of what is where

Another way to help with keep track of what is in your cupboard, and what you need, is to use a white board or a chalk board mounted on the inside or outside of your pantry cupboard door. You can use this to keep track of what should be used up soon and what should go on the grocery list. Make it accessible for everyone in the household to add to it.

4. Use clear, airtight containers

Investing in clear containers that have an airtight seal will help in two very important ways. First, it will stop your grocery items from going bad or stale, or from being infested with bugs like weevils, moths and small beetles. Secondly, decanting your dried cereals, flour, pasta, sugar, snacks and spices will make it easier to see how much you have left and when you need to top up. Visibility is one of the most important steps in keeping your pantry organized and fresh. This will also allow you to get rid of excess or bulky packaging, which can conceal what you have and make it harder to store neatly. The containers that you use can be simple plastic containers, glass jars, mason jars or even resealable plastic bags.

5. Install stadium style shelves

Stepwise or stadium style shelves will elevate stuff in the back and make it more visible and easier to reach without sacrificing on space. This works especially well for cans and spices and can also be a very appealing way to display your spices if you so choose.

6. Use mesh or wicker drawers in large shelves

An effective way of making use of large shelves is to put in mesh or wicker drawers that you can easily pull out. This will improve visibility and accessibility of the items in the drawers while also making more efficient use of bigger spaces. This is an excellent way to store vegetables that do not need to be refrigerated, for example. This can also work well for empty areas underneath shelves that are otherwise not being used. Alternatively, adding another level with stackable drawers or with an extra set of wire shelves can also make use of that extra space.

7. Install pull out pantry shelves for those very narrow spaces

There are often small gaps and dark areas in your kitchen that you just don’t even think about, like the space between the wall (or a cupboard or counter) and your fridge. This can be an excellent spot for a pull-out pantry. These narrow shelves are usually set on wheels or rails and are easy to pull out for quick and easy access, while also being neatly tucked away and out of sight when you are not using them. This is excellent for cans, jars, sauces and spices.

8. Install turntables in your pantry cupboards

A turntable, also known as a Lazy Susan, is an excellent way to make items in your pantry easier to find and access without making a mess trying to look for things tucked behind other things. This is great for frequently used supplies like spices, tea or coffee, baking supplies or snacks. They can also work effectively in hard-to-reach corners or deep shelves.

9. Use can racks to store cans

Can racks are an easy and simple way to store cans safely. This helps to reduce space, while also placing your cans within easy reach. With these racks, as soon as you take one can out, the next one will be right there within reach. You should be able to see how many cans you have in each rack without having to bend down or move anything out of the way first. This is also a safer option than storing cans stacked on top of each other as there is no chance of cans falling over and causing chaos or damage. This option also works well in the fridge for cooldrink cans.

10. Mounted shelving for inside cupboard doors

An area that is often underutilized is the space on the cupboard doors themselves. Installing a few hooks or narrow shelves in this space can be a great way to maximize your cupboard space while also making things more visible and more accessible.