Source: Ella Claire [1]

It's easy to pull that paper sack of flour and cardboard box of cereal out of your grocery bag and toss them directly onto your kitchen shelf — but just because nonperishable food products come in packaging doesn't mean they have to be stored that way. Removing the packaging before storing is a shockingly simple way of improving the appearance and functionality of your kitchen. Need more convincing? Keep reading.

When you remove food packaging, you . . .

• Fit More Into a Smaller Space

Those crumpled bags, cardboard boxes, and plastic wrappers add up. Before you know it, fitting anything on your kitchen shelves becomes a game of Tetris. Toss the bulky, space-eating packaging from the get-go and store products in designated containers to maximize your storage space.

• Know Exactly What Products You Have (and Therefore What You Need)

How many times have you gone to the store and bought an expensive bag of sliced almonds for a recipe only to discover you already had two open bags at home or purchased a new box of spaghetti when you had a dozen half-used boxes hiding on your shelf? When like ingredients are combined and clearly visible in one central place, cooking becomes easier and grocery shopping more efficient.

• Create an Attractive Aesthetic

Flip through images of tidy kitchens and pantries and you're likely to be drawn to those that have ditched the packaging in favor of uniform storage containers. The reason is simple: the streamlined elegance of matching glass jars and bins is straight up prettier than a hodgepodge of mismatched packaging.

Source: A Prudent Life [2]