I try to update it each time food is used up and also when the store is added to. I re-do the list every month or two. If something is still on the list after a couple of months I make sure I use it up, which avoids waste.

Could it have been for an ironing board & mops? I’ve often seen those kind of cupboards in small kitchens and no cupboard in the laundry.
Or perhaps it had an insert that was removed by a previous tenant/owner

@ Danielle: “As I’m renting, I’m trying to find creative ways to store food that doesn’t require buying lots of plastic storage, miscellaneous shelves, etc.”

If you want to find something to put in that second pantry to increase its storage but not have something that’s sole purpose, I suggest you have a hunt around yard sales, good will shops etc for a small table or a little bookshelf unit that would fit in the cupbard. Either could be reused elsewhere later or sold when you no longer need them.

I avoid plastic unless it is BPA-free. So I find glass jars, especially Maccona coffee jars, to be a great alternative for pantry goods.

Re the plastic wrap on the shelves… it’s easier and cheaper to get into the habit of wiping the bottle with a cloth before putting it back into the fridge.

On the main shelves, cheesecloth teatowels would also be good in place of the plastic wrap. Or a tray which can be removed and put in the dishwasher (eg a baking tray which is not-so-non-stick-anymore). Both are washable and reusable

One thing I would add is to keep a whiteboard on the fridge. Any time someone uses something up or takes the last item (including TP, shampoo, etc.), write it on the list. If it’s not on the list when I make my grocery list the night before I shop, it doesn’t get purchased.

It only took one episode of this to get my husband on board with remembering to put things on the whiteboard when they run out!

I shop once per week.

The group by type (my categories are a bit different) also works great. I wish the put new-in-back rule was carried out a bit more often, but then I’m glad when the DS actually helps do such things.

Many of you probably have already seen the Perfect Pantry blog – on Saturdays they feature real-life pantries, not staged perfection. While most do not show the inside of the refrigerator, they do show how people organize the pantry, or whatever serves as a pantry. All the way from gorgeous room sized ones to ones that are just a couple of shelves, and those are not always in the kitchen. All are quite interesting to see what’s considered essential to have on hand in various parts of the world.

We compost our cellulose sponges. No waste!

If you’re using a natural sponge, then you’re actually killing a sea animal … taking a life just to clean your refrigerator doesn’t seem very helpful to the environment, either.

Sponges used to be made of cellulose from wood pulp, but the vast majority of manufacturers in this country have turned to plastic polymers in the past decade. Wood cellulose sponges still end up in the trash … same as the Wrap … when you’re finished. Both will eventually break down and neither will be releasing chlorine into the soil, but both will still end up in a landfill.

Just saying our suggestion wasn’t “thoughtless,” we most certainly thought about it …

The tips on arranging dry goods, and using painter’s tape to date perishables are great.