Category Archives: Friday Buffet

Ins and outs from the week in food waste

Friday Buffet

Since food prices are set to increase in 2013, it’s the perfect time to cut waste to keep your food costs steady. The Globe and Mail concurs. Meanwhile, that article contains the astounding fact that “Canadian households waste 38 per cent of their food purchased in store and restaurants.” Whoa. — — This Pittsburgh Post-Gazette […]

January 4, 2013 | Also posted in Household, International, Supermarket | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

Thanks for the tips on avoiding food waste, Dr. Weil! — — There’s an appropriate mood to this fabulous European Union-made video on food waste. Lamenting? Melancholy? Also–awesome disclaimer at the end of the video: “All the food used during the shooting of this clip has been cooked and eaten by the crew.” — — […]

December 7, 2012 | Also posted in International, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Tuesday Buffet

There’s some evidence that the issue of food waste is catching on in China, albeit in a fairly political way. According to the official newspaper of the Communist Youth League, the abundant food waste can be blamed on the wealthy. — — Waitrose, the British grocery chain, just announced that it now sends no food […]

October 30, 2012 | Also posted in Anaerobic Digestion, International, Supermarket | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

Wait, what?! According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, 50% of Europe’s fruit and vegetables are wasted. I’ll have more on this staggering news on Monday. — — Lots of food waste discussion up in Canada. A recent report found that 51% of Canadian food waste comes from homes. I’m not sure I’d classify that as […]

October 5, 2012 | Also posted in Composting, Energy, Household, International, Stats, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

Unharvested fruit from backyard trees is certainly a waste. But we don’t often put uneaten mushrooms or nuts in that same category. But, this DIY.org page brimming with foraging resources does. — — Massachusetts will be banning commercial food waste from landfills in 2014. If you want to nerd out on the policy process, have […]

September 21, 2012 | Also posted in Alphabet Produce, Freegan, Household, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

Many of you will relate to Molly Watson’s determination to avoid melon waste through kitchen effort and ingenuity. — — Meanwhile, there’s a lot to like about making sandwiches out of leftovers. A great waste-avoiding strategy with a tasty byproduct! — — Wondering why we don’t feed much food waste to livestock? Here’s a succinct answer […]

September 7, 2012 | Also posted in Food Recovery, Household, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

A new study from USDA researchers puts the total cost of food waste at 165 billion–just for retail and consumer segments of the food chain. And–that’s with 2008 data. So the total cost is certainly higher than that. — — Residents of Le Sueur, Minn. are not thrilled about a potential anaerobic digestion facility that […]

July 27, 2012 | Also posted in Anaerobic Digestion, Composting, Stats | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

I’m all for a machine that helps determine avocado ripeness by tapping it and listening to acoustics. Coming soon to a UK supermarket near you… — — Great title: “Food, too, is wasted on the young.” (Think about it for a second.) And the article has some eye-opening stats on Australian food waste. — — Just […]

July 20, 2012 | Also posted in Composting, Energy, Household, International, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

In the UK, the quasi-governmental agency WRAP launched the Hospitality and Food Services Agreement, which allows restaurants to pledge a 5% food and packaging waste reduction by 2015. Domino’s, McDonald’s, Unilever and 2o-odd others have signed on in Britain. Exciting news, but I fear that the companies will focus on packaging (which would be useful, but not […]

June 29, 2012 | Also posted in Composting, International, Personal, Restaurant, Waste Stream | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization continues to tackle waste with the SAVE FOOD initiative. — — The anaerobic digestion hit parade continues, as the California Energy Commission just awarded a $6 million grant to a Sacramento food waste-to-energy facility. That’ll definitely cover their shovel costs. — — The EPA recently recognized several New England […]

June 15, 2012 | Also posted in College, Energy, Hunger, International | Comments closed