You are not logged in. Login Now
 0-15          
 
Author Message
popcorn
Wasted Food Mark Unseen   May 19 02:17 UTC 1993

Recently, I read that something like 25% of all food purchased
is thrown away.  This does not include food scraps like carrot tops --
just edible food that could have been eaten.  This percentage seems
awfully high.  So i got thinking about where kitchen waste comes
from and how to reduce it.

Do you waste a lot of uneaten food?  What do you do to reduce wasted
food in your kitchen?
15 responses total.
aa8ij
response 1 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 19 04:08 UTC 1993

    yikes!!!  That could go to feed a lot of people. I particularly, try to
buy/prepare just enough for 1 meal and possibly some leftovers. I do, include
space for leftovers in my food budget for the week. I do know some people who
refuse to eat leftovers (even after 1 hour). But, I am guilty of tossing out 
some food that I knew that could have been givto the hungry.

   When I am driving, if I *do* buy too much, I give the leftovers to my
sister, or to a homeless person if I happen to cross thier path. I have a 
"menu" set and try to abide by it daily.
danr
response 2 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 19 11:34 UTC 1993

We don't waste a lot (certainly not 25%), but some waste is
unavoidable.  I think you have to plan your meals around what you
purchase.  For example, if you buy sour cream, but only need half of
it for what you're making today, think of what you can make within the
next week that will use the rest of it.
kentn
response 3 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 19 15:42 UTC 1993

I recently tossed out a signicant amount of "hairy" food from the 'fridge.
It's really annoying to see good leftovers turn moldy.  My son refuses to
eat leftovers.  As such, I quit worrying about making things that he likes
and have concentrated on making dishes that result in good leftovers for
myself.  In my experience, it's not good to keep more than about two 
dishes worth of leftovers in the fridge.  More than that tend to get pushed
back to the back and forgotten.  
popcorn
response 4 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 20 02:42 UTC 1993

re 2: ja, when i started planning my meals and making shopping lists
the amount of moldy ingredients i threw away went waaaaay down.
buying food in bulk at the co-op helps, too, because i can buy
exactly the amount i plan to use.
tnt
response 5 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 20 04:48 UTC 1993

 The ONLY time I have thrown out non-spoiled food in my house is when I made
a big pile of spaghetti & garlic bread for myself (my son had already eaten
his dinner), and my son swiftly jumped up on the couch, stole 2 pieces of 
garlic bread, & ran off with it.

        There was a lot of leftover spaghetti when I was done eating, and I 
made a deliberate effort to let my 2.5 year old kid see me dump the pasta into
the sink's garbage disposal (SOP is usually to give him any leftovers).

popcorn
response 6 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 20 11:14 UTC 1993

(standard reminder: tnt's "son" is a Vietnamese potbelied pig)
mythago
response 7 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 20 14:28 UTC 1993

I just invite keats over. Never have to worry about leftovers that
way...
glenda
response 8 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 21 13:00 UTC 1993

We have Damon.  His nick-name is Hoover for a very good reason.  (As in give
it to the Hoover.)
mythago
response 9 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 22 14:33 UTC 1993

keats did the stunt-eating for "The Flash".
popcorn
response 10 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 23 04:03 UTC 1993

We used to call my dad "the garbage can".
Kinda the opposite of the kid Mikey on the Life cereal commercials.
aa8ij
response 11 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 23 06:56 UTC 1993

This response has been erased.

danr
response 12 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 23 13:29 UTC 1993

re #10:  My dad was kind of like that, too.  He used to always eat the
burned stuff that no one else wanted.  I used to think that he was just
being cheap, but now I really think he likes the burnt taste.
steve
response 13 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 24 02:06 UTC 1993

   We used to waste a lot more food than we do now.  We aren't
perfect, but at least whole veggies don't go store -> our place ->
dump anymore.
keats
response 14 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 24 22:49 UTC 1993

i think i'm being discussed.

(i'm also kinda hungry right now, strangely enough...)
tsty
response 15 of 15: Mark Unseen   May 25 06:51 UTC 1993

I cna't remember the last time I threw away food, really. Ummm, maybe when I 
moved and there was too little left to transport, but that's about it.
  
I scrub, not peel. Cook *for* leftovers so that I can improve the quantity-out
for time-spent, and freeze quarts or 1/2 quarts. 
 
And this pattern has been in effect for as long as I've been cooking. Maybe
it's just me .......
  
Oh, and I am forever being "accused" of having a 'hollow leg', just in case
someone needs some un-wanted food disposed of ......... 
 0-15          
Response Not Possible: You are Not Logged In
 

- Backtalk version 1.3.30 - Copyright 1996-2006, Jan Wolter and Steve Weiss