waste waste waste

[pjh75]

Anyone watching the Great British Waste Menu?... the winners are now having to supersize their dishes so going straight to the source i.e. farms... you wouldn't believe the amount of waste there is and the reasons.

[Wombat]

Scary isn't it - but I guess as consumers we are the ones to blame.

[Nicos]

Nope- missed it - sad to say!

BUT ...I utterly hate waste of any food.
Absolutely NO excuse to put stuff in the bin...makes my really , really frustrated

On a lighter note...I love the programme Ready Steady cook...perhaps they should start doing it with leftovers???

[HotStuff]

I'm watching it, but I'm about half hour behind real time as I got delayed elsewhere. I think it's good to raise awareness of this, but just wonder how many of those people that gave them stuff were influenced to maybe be a bit more generous because they were on TV.

On a personal level I think one of the key things is to plan ahead, work out a meal plan for the main meals for the next week before you go shopping and stick to you list. With that, plus things that have a relatively long life, like pasta, rice and canned goods, you should be able to cope with most eventualities.

[selfraising]

It's terrible and think EU regulations about size and shape of veg also have a lot to answer too as well as consumers.

[pjh75]

Supermarkets got a bit of a battering for throwing so much food away, but I'm sure I heard somewhere that there are rules and regulations which stop them giving it away.

[taff]

I think it's just because they don't want to get sued if someone eats something dodgy from the skips.
Got a few friends who skip-hunt, more power to them....

[Two_Sheds]

I used to work for a major high street bookseller. When our old or damaged books had been in the Sales twice and not sold, we had to rip them up and bin them: we weren't allowed to donate them to Oxfam

[kentvegplot]

I thought it was really interesting. I was struck by the farmer who was ploughing back the lettuce which weren't up to supermarket spec. It presumably wouldn't have been worth while to pay anyone to cut it (and perhaps the contract with the supermarket would have forbidden it anyway).

BUT using up the scraps needs knowledge - people don't know how to use things so they bin them. We need to teach our children and grandchildren how to turn scraps into meals.

[SueA]

I watched some of it too & was appalled at how much was thrown away but it was interesting to see that even the farm shops throw slightly blemished, oddly-shaped etc. food away as people just won't buy it.

[Alison]

The thing is that there have been several other programmes like this in the past and everybody has said that it is terrible but nothing changes. We throw practically no food because I spend half an hour every week planning meals and only buy what I need. It really isn't difficult but a lot of people can't be bothered and the amount wasted at source is criminal. In an age where as a country we import so much food it is terrible that we waste so much of what we do grow and that the system encourages this.

[Hilary B]

I hardly ever plan meals, I never have, but I use what is there. Sometimes veg gets left too long, that goes to the compost heap; occasionally I look through the freezer and find meat that should have been used a while ago, that gets turned into dog food. The only real 'throw away' is bread, and that only happens when it is growing penicillin; if we know it won't get used and it isn't yet mouldy, that goes to the dogs too (dogs are really useful!)!

[Flummery]

You either plan like Alison or cook on spec with whatever's there like Hilary (and me!) and you won't waste food.

However, what wasn't mentioned was that cooking with food that needs much trimming and prep take LOADS more time than with perfect specimens. Those of us who love our food, especially if we grow our own and know that vegetables don't come out of the ground all the same size and shape, are prepared to put time into meal preparation. Those people who want frozen mash and ready diced veg won't be bothered to prepare slightly imperfect food.

As always, re-education is the answer. Offal is brilliant. You can buy smoked slamon trim - why can't you buy cod and haddock and other fish in this form. Great for fish pie.

[toastie]

Watched the tv programme last night and was absolutely appauled by the amount of waste all along the 'food chain'. Try to do my bit my buying food (that I have to buy) from a local source or at least from UK producers. Guess we can all do our bit to help.

[Glutton4...]

I hardly ever plan meals, I never have, but I use what is there. Sometimes veg gets left too long, that goes to the compost heap; occasionally I look through the freezer and find meat that should have been used a while ago, that gets turned into dog food. The only real 'throw away' is bread, and that only happens when it is growing penicillin; if we know it won't get used and it isn't yet mouldy, that goes to the dogs too (dogs are really useful!)!

Ditto above, with the exception that it's Chickens, not Dogs.