Monday, I referenced snagging some produce from a vendor’s compost box at my local farmers’ market. (I love how the tomato on the market’s site isn’t perfect–very honest)
I also bought some stuff from that vendor and couldn’t help notice the many decent-looking peppers and squash in their compost bin as I paid.
Out of curiosity, thrift and faithfulness to you, dear reader, I asked the farmer if I could look through the box. “Have at it,” the woman said in a tone to which I’ve grown accustomed.
At it I had.
I could understand why most of the items were set aside for composting. There were a bunch of peppers and tomatoes with a moldy spot. Even these, though, were quite salvageable. In the worst case, you just cut away half of the item.
Still, some produce, like the yellow pepper pictured above, was perfectly good. All I can think of is that it looked a little hunched over. Squashed or not, though, it still spruces up my salads!
What’s more, farmers at this market–bless their hearts–donate excess items to a local food pantry. So the compost is stuff deemed not good enough for charity. Yet, with a tiny bit of effort in some cases and none at all in others, this “compost” can become “lunch.”
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