Many Americans grew up with the ‘clean your plate, there are starving children in Africa’ admonishment.  Apparently, some African immigrants use a similar expression today. Good to know!
I think this post by “Ms. KB,” a Liberian woman now living in Pennsylvania, has an interesting and unusual perspective on food waste. Plus, she spins a good yarn.
Wasting […]

Imagine food wrapping that could indicate the presence of E. coli or salmonella. Or a swab that could signal when other pathogens are present.
Sunday’s New York Times Magazine featured this technological breakthrough in its “Year in Ideas” list. While no products are available yet, a consortium of Canadian universities and companies, Sentinel Bioactive Paper Network, will soon release many […]

As we’ve heard lately, times are tough for food banks. Diminished government funding and private donations have left most food banks struggling to meet client demand.
In New York, City Harvest has responded with a Million Pound Pledge to add that much food to its regular collection. Essentially, they’ve asked donors to step up, as described in this radio […]

Ever find yourself with a decent amount of ingredients left after cooking but unsure what to do with them? Reader Andrew C. wrote in with just that problem and asked:

I was wondering if you knew if there were any recipe websites out there that can give you a list of recipes based on the […]

The Ball Sate University student paper had a behind-the-scenes look at college cafeteria dishwashing. In addition to making me want French toast sticks, the article provided this insight: 
Sophomore dishwasher Sara Morand, a chemistry and theater studies major, said students left waste constantly, especially unopened food, which the washers had to throw away.
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Sticking with college cafeterias, […]

Bri, of Figs with Bri fame, recently wrote in with a tale of waste. She passed along a story from an acquaintance of hers who worked at a California outlet of bulk retailer CostCo. I’ll let him tell the story: 
One night when I was helping close up the store, I overheard some of the employees who prepared […]

Happy Hanukkah! (or Chanukah, if you prefer)
In the spirit of “The Festival of Light,” I thought I’d illuminate the Orthodox Jewish practice of Shmita/Shemittah. This biblical law holds that the land of Israel must lay fallow every seventh year. No planting or pruning of crops–it’s like a sabbath for the land.
Practical Talmudic scholars, though, have found dogmatically-acceptable ways […]

After a Trader Joe’s recently opened in my town, I’ve had a chance to observe the store’s practices from a wasted food perspective. Here’s what I’ve noticed:
Trader Joe’s does many things well. Produce, is not one of them. My main complaint is that the grocery chain encourages waste the same way CostCo or Sam’s Club does–in […]

At the beginning of most weeks, I give tips on how to avoid wasting food. Today let’s talk about prioritizing what to cook.
I’ve often nagged that it’s best to plan out the week’s meals or at least a few in a row before grocery shopping to avoid excessive purchasing. What happens if you don’t have time […]