With the rising costs of gas prices hitting all of us, along with rising everything prices, I was thinking that maybe, just maybe this will be a time for the policies to be changed on all the waste in food. <p> We used to be able to go to the grocery store and get the trimmings from the produce department for our cow and chickens. In the boxes there was usually enough good stuff for a week of salads for us and plenty for the cow and chickens. Then they changed the rule as they were worried about lawsuits and problems with people getting mad because someone else got it before them.
<p> On Like Merchant ships and here on Frugal Hacks the topic came up about eating out etc. I do not eat out very often at all, but one thing that was my thought was the expectation that it is okay to order way more food than you know you will eat, because it is not ethical to share a meal according to a few who were giving her a hard time. <p>I have always been irritated by food waste, when people throw away good food, not because it is bad, but because it is past dates. Some things do go bad past dates, but most things are so chemically preserved like a cake mix, it could not go bad if it wanted to! i had milk one time that would not sour, which was scary to me, but it was way past dates! I hope that if we could suffer a bit more, we would start actually using the resources we have, change things on legal issues that cause hunger in this country.
<p> There is a bakery here in town that gives it’s day old stuff to the food pantry as well as many other places, but my friend who work there said that no one will take it as it is good, homemade type artisian bread. They want the fluffy white bread!!! It goes to waste. Starbucks gave these cookie bars they were selling there for $4 a triangle!!! They were okay, but not worth $4! There used to be a store that sold things that were dented cans from Costco here. He had to shut down eventually because Costco was afraid of lawsuits. <p> There is still a couple Amish stores that sell dented goods, but even their prices have gone up. <p> Anyhow, I hope that somehow we can all learn to work together more and not be so sue happy so we would all be able to survive in a world where simple things cost more and more everyday!
It is weird, the juxtaposition of America's massive waste of food on a daily basis and the media sounding the alarm about food scarcity.
I don't know if it is just my area, but I have always had a hard time finding food "seconds". The "discount" bakery has no discounts at all that I can see, and only one other store that I know of sells it's day-old bread. I have never found discounted produce, and when I've asked about it, they just look at me like I'm nuts and tell me the don't do that. :/
I have been tempted by other people's stories of "dumpster diving" at restaurants and grocery stores. People have found beautiful produce and perfectly good baked items, still in bags. But I'm too shy and would be too embarassed should someone catch me.