Valentines Buffet

Here’s a nice collection of reader suggestions on how to use-it-up and avoid waste, as compiled by my friendly local newspaper.

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Che? Any Italian speakers want to help me out here? I’m guessing that 30% of Italian food is wasted, but there’s a lot on that page!

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When the Voice of Agriculture speaks, I listen. Especially when it’s a well-crafted argument against waste.

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This just in from A Prairie Home Companion WXOW: Gundersen Lutheran is donating uneaten conference food to help feed folks at a nearby shelter.

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Finally, if you’re in or near Birmingham, Ala., boy do I have a book club for you!

February 14, 2011 | Posted in General | Comments closed

Super Money Savers

This time of year, the adjective ‘super’ gets thrown around a bunch. Well, this list of ways to save money with food is really that.

Without further ado, here’s that super list: 14 Ways to Save Money on Groceries. In my humble opinion, it really could be called 14 Ways to Avoid Food Waste.

I especially like the freezing herbs strategy and the strategy for keeping carrots and celery crunchy. Did you learn anything from the list? Or is there a tip you’d add?

And while you’re on that Shine site, you may as well consider what to buy and what to avoid at Trader Joe’s. I’d vote for skipping packaged produce.

February 9, 2011 | Posted in Household, Supermarket | Comments closed

Super Monday

Good to hear the NFL’s habit of recovering edible food from its Super Bowls continued last night in Dallas. This tradition of excellence donation has been happening for almost 20 years now.

The NFL works with local food recovery groups and acquires food from events leading up to the game and the game itself (both high and low-brow fare). The haul is usually pretty astounding and with attendance at Cowboys Stadium approaching a Super Bowl attendance record, it may come close to the 2008 benchmark of 93,000 pounds of food.

A few years back, I interviewed Jack Groh, director of the NFL Environmental Program and the originator of this commendable NFL tradition. Great guy, great program.

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For those of you at home wondering how to use up your Super Bowl party leftovers, here’s some real hands on advice on using up the leftovers from that Super Bowl veggie tray or on how to make leftovers sandwiches. Whatever strategy you take, I’m guessing Monday night’s dinner is taken care of.

February 7, 2011 | Posted in Events, Food Recovery, Household | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

The latest version of Freakonomics Radio has a few fascinating bits linked to reducing waste. There’s the food scientist who’s worked on canning tomatoes to maximize taste and minimize waste. And then there’s an inventor who created a “food printer” that could trim waste by creating just the right amount of food, through just-in-time cooking.

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Because I’m a fan of Portland, dumpster diving and Fred Armisen, the Portlandia send up of freeganism really hit the spot.

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This piece contains some Thanksgiving-like advice for avoiding excessive Super Bowl leftovers: Give it away

If you’re hosting a Super Bowl party, plan to have resealable plastic bags and food-storage containers handy to send guests home with goodies. This works perfectly for potato and pasta salads, as well as cookies and other sweets.

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Finally, check out this Carrots ‘N Cake post on saving money at the grocery store. Many of the tips double as ways to reduce waste. The two usually go hand-in-hand.

February 4, 2011 | Posted in Friday Buffet, Household, Supermarket, Technology | Comments closed

The Reports Report

Last week, the EPA released the latest version of its Municipal Solid Waste report. It’s a big occasion in these parts.

If you’re like me, you eschew the fact sheet for the 189-page full report. Because the latter includes the all-important “products discarded” (on page 94). That represents what’s dumped in landfills, after recycling reduces the tons of “products generated.”

In 2009, food scraps made up–dramatic pause–20.8% of what we sent to the landfill. That marked the first time in recent history that we’ve definitively topped the 20%-mark, although last year technically did so, at 19.5%.

Zooming out, the percentage of landfill contents that is food doubled from 1980 to 2009. More than anything, that illustrates the improved recycling of most other goods (while composting languishes).

More bad news: food makes up a larger percentage of trash “generated.” It’s now 14.1%.

The one shimmering ray of, um, hope: food “recovery” (composting, mostly) rocketed from 2.4 to 2.5%.

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And in case you missed it, the USDA just released their every five-year Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010. Because of the above reading, I didn’t get through all 95 pages of this departmental step-in-the-right-direction. Fortunately, Marion Nestle did.

Anyway, I was heartened to see that even the two-page summary featured the recommendation to “avoid oversized portions.” You got that, restaurants??

February 2, 2011 | Posted in Household, Restaurant, Stats, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Un-Greening the Capitol

It was somewhat surprising to hear that the GOP leadership decided to scrap the Capitol composting plan last week. Surprising, because who doesn’t like composting? Somewhat, because you can find opposition to anything except ice cream and puppies in Washington.

The UPI reported that House Administration Chairman Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) decided to cut the program instituted under the “Green the Capitol” program of former Senate Majority Leader Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

The reports cite increased energy usage from the pulping of compostables as a major factor in Lungren’s decision. This despite a reduced carbon footprint. Wait–you mean running a pulper is more energy-consuming than just putting everything in a dumpster?!? Shocking.

That increased energy use at the Capitol would lead to great climate benefits down the line, when the items would be composted, not landfilled. One would imagine legislators are used to spending money in the short term for a long term benefit. Especially when it’s done to set a positive example for the country. And it’s not as if $500,000 is a huge outlay for the federal government.

Given all of that…my cynical side–supported by both of the above articles–thinks that this dismantling was done to slight Pelosi, who saw “Green the Capitol” as her baby.

One undeniable notion hinted at in The Post’s report is the need for a better composting infrastructure. Closer composting locations would lower both costs and emissions.

January 31, 2011 | Posted in Composting, Energy | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

Food’s cheapness is a major factor in why we waste so much of it. A BlogHer writer makes a compelling case that buying expensive food reduces waste both from overeating and discards.

Waste comes in two forms: food disposed of in the garbage and food disposed of in the human body. When you eat beyond satiety…Yup, you’re treating your body like a trash can.

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Fort Hays State University is the latest landing spot for Chartwells’ Project: Clean Plate. The only real question I have is: colon or no colon?

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More fallout from the Global Food and Farming Futures report: The study’s Chief Scientific Advisor said that “halving the amount of food waste by 2050 could boost today’s annual production by a quarter.”

I’m pretty sure I get that.

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Freeganism (the practice and term) has reached Ohio State and Australia.

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Finally, if you’re going out with a big group in Hong Kong, don’t forget 6 is the new 8.

January 28, 2011 | Posted in College, Composting, Friday Buffet, Household, International | Comments closed

Stocking Up

I went through a phase of making my own soup stock, but my interest waned along with my enthusiasm for soup. Well, there’s been a resurgence on both fronts.

When I recently found myself making more soups and stews, I thought it was high time to reintroduce the practice of setting aside veggie skins, scraps and the like for stock making.

The process really couldn’t be much easier. I’m keeping a plastic container in the freezer, and every time I do a little peeling, trimming or cutting, I toss in the remainders. It’s also a nice repository for the wilted herbs (not ones gone bad) and the (literal) odds and ends we’re not going to use.

Turning scraps to stock is a better use of resources (natural and monetary) than composting these materials. After all, you’re using unwanted items to help create desired ones (provided your cooking is at least passable). Besides, you can still compost the solid remains afterward.

And as a bonus, making vegetable stock makes me feel less guilty about peeling my carrots. [Note: I’ve stopped peeling the local ones from the farmers’ market.]

Since I’m far from an expert on the topic, are there any tips/strategies you’ve found helpful for making vegetable stock? Any no-no’s?

January 26, 2011 | Posted in Household, Personal | Comments closed

2050: A Hunger Odyssey?

The Independent (UK) recently spent some time considering how we’ll feed everyone in 2050. Today’s publication of a report on the topic by a governmental group  prompted the article.

The Foresight Programme’s Global Food and Farming Futures report preaches that we’ll need to use all methods at our disposal (including GM crops) to have enough food for all 9.2 billion of us by 2050. Business as usual won’t cut it .

I agree, as long as that includes cutting waste. Reducing waste can only help. Fortunately, the Brits concur, as does a recent French study, Agrimonde:

Like the UK’s Foresight report, the French study found there is no overwhelming obstacle to feeding a global population of 9.2 billion people, provided food yields are boosted, waste is cut both after harvesting and in the kitchen, and food distribution is improved.

The Foresight study had one specific suggestion, according to The Independent‘s sneak peek:

To combat the huge amounts of food waste – up to 40 per cent of food bought in developed countries ends up being thrown away – the scientists are also expected to recommend changes to legislation covering “sell by” dates.

Sounds like a plan. Or at least the beginnings of one. Just in the nick of time, as 2050 will sneak up on us. After all, January’s almost over!

January 24, 2011 | Posted in International | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

Check out this neat NPR story on gleaning in Tennessee. Great press for the valiant Society of St. Andrew.

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Ag giant Archer Daniels Midland and the University of Illinois are teaming up to figure out how to avoid waste in the developing world. ADM is contributing $10 million to fund the Institute for the Prevention of Postharvest Loss at the Urbana campus.

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Similarly, in sub-Saharan Africa, the UN’s FAO is trying to reduce post-harvest losses through a variety of methods.

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Once the big boys of the waste world like Waste Management start opening organics recycling facilities, it’s only a matter of time before composting and separate food waste collection go mainstream. What’s that?? They just announced they’re opening one this spring in Florida? Nice!

The last line of the press release has the key stat–only 2.5% of food waste is recycled. Plenty of room for improvement, but also–as WM knows well–a real opportunity.

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Here’s a nice peek into the world of Phoenix food recovery group Waste Not.

January 21, 2011 | Posted in Composting, Farm, Food Recovery, International, Waste Stream | Comments closed