Category Archives: International

Chile Charla

At High Noon, local time, I gave my talk on food waste to a room of chefs at the World Association of Chefs Societies Congress. In case you’re curious, here are the slides from the talk (it may take a minute or two to load). Of course, it won’t be the same without my charismatic […]

January 26, 2010 | Also posted in Personal | Comments closed

In Chile

I arrived in Chile this morning; I’m here to give a talk at the World Congress of the World Association of Chefs Societies. It has been a long day, but in a good way. While out walking, I stumbled into a little market–more a row of vendors along the river–one of my favorite things to find. […]

January 24, 2010 | Posted in International | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

Give out of date food to the homeless, UK Environment Secretary Hilary Benn told supermarkets. He singled out food redistribution charity FareShare as part of the solution. There’s only one problem–FareShare doesn’t really collect surplus food. They receive it. The next Briton to start a nationwide food recovery group will be the first. — — Wasting […]

January 22, 2010 | Also posted in Food Recovery, Friday Buffet, Restaurant | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

The U.S. Capitol cafeteria has composted food for a bit, but now there’s plenty more eco-friendly changes in House office buildings. Since launching in 2007, Green the Capitol has diverted 75,000 pounds from landfills. — — I just heard about Hands for Hunger, a food recovery group in the Bahamas from this article. I’m not […]

January 15, 2010 | Also posted in Composting, Food Recovery, Friday Buffet, Household | Comments closed

Help Haiti

I just heard a figure on NPR that blew my mind–roughly 80 percent of Haiti’s GDP is foreign aid. And that was before the quake. If there was ever a place that really didn’t need a natural disaster, Haiti is it. After combing through my archives, I found a few examples of Haitian misery–again, before yesterday’s major […]

January 13, 2010 | Also posted in Hunger | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

In case you were wondering, here’s what Almeda County, i.e. Oakland, thinks about food scrap recycling — — According to this piece from Australia, one-third of Queensland bananas are graded out because they don’t meet supermarkets’ specifications. Crikey! Words of wisdom, from Australia’s head banana man: “I think perhaps years ago when most Australians had […]

January 8, 2010 | Also posted in Composting, Friday Buffet, General, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Morrisons Mission

The other day, I came across this fascinating Food Waste Factbook from Morrisonswhile researching British supermarkets’ response to food waste for my book. After reading through the handbook, I was impressed by the retail chain’s commitment to reducing waste in their stores. Heck, just putting out a 15-page document would put them atop the heap amongst American grocers. They even have […]

January 6, 2010 | Also posted in Supermarket | Comments closed

Going Gratis

Imagine a life without any spending. Is it even possible? Apparently it is if you live in Britain, where squatters have some rights. I found this piece about living for free in London totally engrossing. The article comments on the disposable nature of British, and really Western, society. And of course, a big part of that is food. The author, Katharine Hibbert […]

January 4, 2010 | Also posted in Freegan, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Wrapping Up 2009

Lost in my post-Christmas haze was National Leftovers Day in Australia. It makes plenty of sense, given the usual Christmas dinner abundance. And rest assured the Kiwis are onto the idea, too (in a Dec. 30 article I’m writing about on Dec. 29–a clear example of my soothsaying prowess). In the U.S., we have the Friday after Thanksgiving for the same […]

December 29, 2009 | Also posted in Composting, Repurposing | Comments closed

A Message for December 25…and after

First off, Merry Christmas! Many of us will enjoy a nice family dinner on Christmas–and I hope you do enjoy it! I also hope you make good use of your leftovers. As does my man Hilary Benn, UK Environment Secretary, who hit out at the practice of binning Christmas leftovers. Meanwhile, in a related topic, the […]

December 25, 2009 | Also posted in Composting, History and Culture | Comments closed