Monthly Archives: June 2011

You In?

A package-free, zero-waste, crowd-sourced grocery store is in the works in Austin? Holy hyphens! The store, In.gredients, will open at some point in 2011, as long as their funding outreach progresses. I’m excited to see this store come to fruition, as it seems like a model for other grocers to aim for. I have one small caveat, […]

June 29, 2011 | Posted in Supermarket | Comments closed

Monday Buffet

Here’s NPR’s second story of the week relating to food recovery. I’m a source in this one! — — Massachusetts is clearing some red tape to pave the way for more anaerobic digestion. Wicked awesome! — — Meanwhile, the UK’s largest AD facility just opened in Staffordshire. — — This story on Malaysian restaurateurs’ responses […]

June 27, 2011 | Posted in Anaerobic Digestion, Composting, Food Recovery, International, Personal | Comments closed

NPR Spotlights Food Donation

NPR’s All Things Considered ran a fabulous feature on food donation last night, A Squash’s Journey (Sort of sounds like a kids book, no?) The story focuses on Walmart’s impressive food donation program. Specifically, it traces the, yes, journey of a squash and an ear of corn from the retail shelf to food bank recipients’ […]

June 24, 2011 | Posted in Food Recovery, Personal, Supermarket | Comments closed

Portlandia: the saga continues

While you’ve surely seen this recent “waste stream” story out of Portland, there’s another one worth noting. In short, Rose City residents may soon face this choice: curbside composting or weekly trash collection? In a survey, composting pilot program participants balked at having their monthly garbage bill increase $5 to fund larger garbage cans. Makes sense, […]

June 22, 2011 | Posted in Composting | Comments closed

Music for a Good Dumpster Dive

If you could use a little pick-me-up this morning or some inspiration for hitting the Dumpsters, you could do worse than the Black Lips’ Dumpster Dive. Perhaps fittingly, it’s the last track on their MySpace site and their album… I ain’t seen some good trash since I…since I don’t know when… While I can’t make out […]

June 20, 2011 | Posted in Freegan, History and Culture | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

The Huff Post weighed in on how individuals should handle food waste. Composting it is! — — Nice to see a new-ish composting facility taking root in upstate New York. Almost better–the headline: Dirt, Cheap. — — Here’s some fairly UK-centric tips on how to use up expiring food, courtesy of Love Food Hate Waste’s […]

June 17, 2011 | Posted in Composting, Food Recovery, Friday Buffet, Restaurant | Comments closed

Batali Beckons

Two quick personal notes today: Last year, I was on a panel with a mover and shaker in the Mario Batali empire. After kicking around the idea for a while, I can now say that this July I’ll be giving a few talks to the staff at Mario’s restaurants in L.A. and Las Vegas. I’m […]

June 15, 2011 | Posted in Personal | Comments closed

Dead Food

I’ve never heard the term ‘dead food.’ But, as used in this article from the Kansas City Star, it’s a catchy, appropriate description of food not used. The article describes an urban, local composting facility that will soon begin accepting others’ household food waste. That’s encouraging, as permitting is often the hardest part to creating […]

June 13, 2011 | Posted in Composting | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

Here’s a Change.org petition from my pal Jeremy Seifert and the guys behind Dive! to get Trader Joe’s to stop wasting food. — — Here are some tips for using leftover food, all the way from down under (NZ). — — Staying in New Zealand, the government just honored a company diverting food waste to […]

June 10, 2011 | Posted in Friday Buffet, International, Supermarket | Comments closed

Why Waste Matters: Water

One of the real problems with wasting food is that we also squander the embedded resources. Mainly, oil and water (and I have found a way to mix the two here). While I usually focus on oil, water is increasingly coming to the fore. To wit, this fascinating Dutch study that tallies foods’ water footprint. In […]

June 8, 2011 | Posted in Energy, Environment, International | Comments closed