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Post by Deleted on Oct 25, 2009 10:14:10 GMT
Prompted by the buffet thread in the On the Menu section,I find myself pondering the enormous amount of food wasted in our world today.
Baz mentioned action being taken in NYC where diners are charged by weight of food remaining on a diner's plate,an innovative approach,that I suspect will take some time to take off. Bixa mentioned a restaurant in Oaxaca that donates leftover food to a local orphanage,a more traditional and sensible approach.
Any more ideas out there or suggestions that we might try to explore and implement? Often times the more discussion reaches the populous the more likely action will ensue.
For all I know,there may already be further strides being taken and I would be curious to know more about them.
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Post by auntieannie on Oct 25, 2009 11:02:47 GMT
strangely enough, I was told that McD also charges their managers for wasted food.
In my opinion, a truly successful professional kitchen doesn't waste anything. there is use for everything. and it makes for better food.
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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 25, 2009 15:08:27 GMT
Great subject! There is probably a whole psychological component about attitudes toward wasting that could be explored, but that's not what is at issue for the moment. I have been told that in the US it is illegal for restaurants to donate unserved food at the end of the day because of liability in case of food poisoning or whatever. Is that true? Depending on where you live, you are probably already paying more for your food because of others wasteful habits. Where do all the "imperfect" red bell peppers go, when you are asked to pay $4 a pound for all the uniformly sized and shaped ones? Of course, at that price, the top-model peppers languish unbought until they're ushered out to the dumpster. This loss for the store means we pay higher prices across the board. Wouldn't supermarkets have a better chance of moving all their produce if they copied farmers' markets, with their varied pricing for very ripe, smaller, prettier, etc. versions of a given item? There are some good, thought-provoking sites online addressing the issue of food waste. Here is Wasted Food, a blog on food waste and solutions around the world. It has well-chosen links to pertinent articles, such as this one. Go to google and put the words -wasted food- into search. Simply reading the summaries on the first page of hits alone makes one sit up and take notice. |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 25, 2009 16:43:38 GMT
Am not sure about the liability thing,wouldn't be surprised. I'll bet my friend Luke would know though,I'll ask. He tells me about all the waste from Whole Foods Co. which one would think over all the chain type groceries would have a more socially conscious attitude about this. (one more reason why I have problems with this place,the platitudes...).
Some great links,will read more into. Thanks.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 25, 2009 17:17:17 GMT
At the end of the street markets in France (and probably everywhere else), there are lots of people who come to glean the imperfect or partially damaged fruit and vegetables that are discarded. Some of the vendors will carefully place them in a crate for the poor to pick through, and others will inconsiderately dump them so that they must be picked out of the gutter. (Human nature!  ) Meat and fish are never dumped with the market waste, probably so as not to attract rats and other vermin, but also because the danger of food poisoning would be much greater, and it is certainly illegal to leave it. I'm sure that some of it is given to the needy as they are packing up, but probably most of it is taken back to be "transformed" into something else. |
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Post by traveler63 on Oct 26, 2009 0:28:44 GMT
There is such tremendous waste of food in America. I am always astounded by the portion sizes in nice restaurants. Who needs a sandwich that is 3 or 4 inches thick with meat, cheese, etc. Mr T63 and I generally order from the appetizer menu or if something can be split or shared, we do that. No wonder there is such an obesity problem. It is ludicrous that people in the US go to bed hungry when there is so much waste.
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Post by fumobici on Oct 26, 2009 1:22:54 GMT
I don't mind the large portion sizes in the US, one only need anticipate and arrive with a sufficient appetite. At many American restaurants even a lunch will pretty much last me through 'til bed and once one gets passed that sleepy 'too full' hour or two it's kind of nice not needing to worry about preparing another meal that day. Any food served to me will be eaten, I won't see my perfectly good food thrown out.
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