Book 23: Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal

I've read three books in four days. I wish I could maintain this pace all year, but I have my doubts.

Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal by Tristram Stuart is my latest read. Though a bit dated, 2009, the overall premise of the book is still true. Stuart examines the global food scandal that is wasted food at all steps in the process: from growing/producing food, to packaging, processing food, selling food, throwing food away (as trash), and to a lesser extent, composting.  Redistributing unsold food and using leftovers to feed livestock are ways. to cut down or avoid food waste. Although feeding food to livestock that could have been fed to humans is still wasteful.

The goal around the world would be waste avoidance, but by and large, countries are stuck in waste management. Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea were notable exceptions. Because they are islands or effectively an island blocked by an aggressive neighbor to the north, these nations have realized much sooner that sending food waste to landfills is not a viable solution. Instead, their governments have imposed strict rules about food waste. In South Korea and Taiwan, no food waste of any sort can be put into landfills. 

Food waste can be reduced at any level and so here are some ways that I plan to reduce food waste at home with my family:

1. Meal plan: when we meal plan, we frequently only plan five dinners out of seven since we usually eat out once a week and sometimes our plans change. We also plan at least one meal of the week to be left-overs.
2. take stock of your pantry and make a list before going to the store.
3. I've decided to make a second list post-shopping to post at home. This second list would serve as a reminder of what we bought fresh that needs to be eaten that week.
4. When cooking, we don't make recipes that serve more than four. Two adults and a toddler can't eat a recipe for 8.
5. When it warms up, I want to compost.
6. Last summer my attempt at growing vegetables failed, but I'm going to give the home garden another try.
7. Going to the store two or even three times a week, especially to buy fruits and vegetables. Also more time consuming, buying only what you need when you need it cuts down on waste.
8. Pay some/little attention to use by/sell by dates. Obviously you don't want to eat something rotten that would make you sick, but many of these dates are not helpful and are vastly underestimated. I do try to pick the furthest date possible though when I buy milk.
9. Cut down on meat that is consumed: growing cereals to feed to livestock is a type of food waste. the land used to grow these cereals cannot be used to grow other crops such as fruits and vegetables that would go directly towards human consumption.
10. Hunting: My husband does this. Deer are not raised and so by replacing ground beef with ground venison, we are contributing, in a very small way, to decreasing the amount of beef we eat and in turn, the amount of land needed to raise beef (see #9). My husband only hunts what we can eat in a year and donates any extra deer to a local organization that gives surplus to the needy.