The amount of food we (not only as a nation- but as a planet) waste is destroying the place we call home. Hunger is a world-wide issue, yet still, we are constantly throwing edible food away.
There are so many reasons why perfectly good food gets thrown away, and for the most part, the reasons simply don’t add up. For example, produce is one of the biggest victims to waste. If a fruit or vegetable doesn’t appear perfect in color or shape, it is often discarded entirely, and left to rot rather than nourish someone in need.
Some people simply throw away any “leftovers” rather than storing them and eating them the next day. This is extremely wasteful and avoidable as well.
Perhaps one of the greatest culprits to food waste are restaurants and grocery store. Greed is the root of the waste in most of these cases. Restaurants that have food leftover at the end of the night usually just dump it all in a dumpster rather than donating it to those who desperately need it. Grocery stores are known to destroy and throw away foods which have not yet expired, but arent fresh enough for their selling standards, This is also extremely wasteful.
Ofcourse, food waste most obviously affects those suffering from hunger. If we simply donated food that is perfectly edible rather than throwing it away, the possibilities are almost endless for the amount of good it could do the world.
There’s even more reasons to be conscious about what you throw away and how to store your food properly, however. Food waste also has a significant impact on our environment. The food industry in general (more particulary– the meat and dairy industry) is the largest contributor to climate change and the destruction of our environment. The more food we throw away, the more needs to be produced as we are not utilizing what we already have. Rather than food production slowing down in cases of severe food waste, it actually speeds up. The need for food never goes away. The need for the freshest, prettiest, most perfect food simply increases with each piece of food we discard.
This article is not intended to frighten or scare anyone, but rather to identify a problem that SO many people don’t even realize we are experiencing. If living more sustainably is a goal of yours, like it certainly is for me, than a huge step would be to consider how YOU contribute to the amount of food waste. Consider what you find yourself throwing away, how you purchase your groceries, how you plan and store your meals, etc. There is always room for change or improvement.
For me, I really try to focus on making meals that are also freezer-friendly. That way if I have a lot of leftovers that I anticipate I will not have time to eat, I can simply freeze them for another day. This is not only great in helping to prevent food waste, but it also cuts down on time. When I am in a pinch, I can just open the freezer to a variety of meal options.
Another thing I try to do is utilize my fruit and veggie scraps. I look forward to a more detailed post on this topic, where I tell you exactly how I use my broccoli stalks and apple peels!
Little Mindful Kitchen 