As a community, we should be aware of the what we need and what we dont. On a large scale we can look at industry, purchasing and country by country statistics to see how we waste.
I wonder where Australia fits in this table????
The average Australian wastes 200kg of food a year......yet two million of us also go hungry.
How can that be?
So on a much smaller scale, our school, what do we waste????
1.The Canteen - look at the counter at the last bell. Are there hot or cold foods left over and what happens to them??
2. The Home Economics Departments - How well do they purchase?? (i have been informed very carefully as they are on a strict budget!)
3. The Average Lunch box - How many lunches are eaten or binned??
The RESULTS- We investigated these three areas by interviewing and asking the big questions.
So what do these areas of the school do to control and prevent waste.
1. The Canteen.
The canteen is advised on any excursions or change of routines that may affect student numbers and in turn, lunches made.
The ladies encourage before school ordering so not too many extra lunches are made.
The canteen will make less hot food rather than too much.
Our students are always hungry, so not much is generally left over!
2. HOME ECONOMICS
A very strict budget and ordering. Any products that can be frozen, are frozen, to prolong their life and the staff work on planning a head when organing prac lessons.
3. The Average Lunch Box.
This was the most dissapointing as far as wastage goes.
The students were asked about their food and whether they ate it, binned it or shared it.
All students asked at one time have thrown their lunch out.
Most students have given their lunch or swapped it.
Most students eat their own lunch, well most of it anyway.
Fruit and crusts off sandwiches were the largest item binned.
1. Shop wisely. Create menus for the week, incorporating leftovers and foods that might spoil if not used up.
2. Don’t be duped at the store. Some of the biggest problems at the consumer end, the report noted, is that we’re suckers for sales and promotions, meaning we often end up buying stuff we don’t need and won’t use.
3. Ignore the dates. Though "use by," "sell by," and "best by" dates show up on everything. A recent study from the UK found that roughly 20% of food is wasted because of confusion over these arbitrary labels. So don't toss food based on label dates; use your nose and your eyes.
4. Organize your fridge. Make sure everything is visible so nothing gets shoved in the back and forgotten.
5. Put your freezer to work. Frozen fruits and veggies are smart options if your fresh produce tends to spoil before you use it all.
6. Eat on smaller plates. The size of the average American dinner plate has increased 36% between 1960 and 2007, and that leads people to load up on food they can't finish.
7. When you must, compost. Food waste makes up 25%, by weight, of all garbage that gets sent to landfills, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. There, it decomposes and creates methane, a greenhouse gas that's 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Find a corner of your yard and start a compost heap, where unused food and scraps can decompose without producing methane.
Recently.............in the media.......an article
'Time to stop food wastage', say Aussie farmers
5 June 2013 the article went as follows.
2013’s World Environment Day is seeking to share the message ‘Think. Eat. Save’, encouraging people to be mindful of food wastage – a message that Australian farmers can relate to, as the producers of almost 93 percent of the nation’s food supply.
Australians throw away approximately 7.5 million tonnes of food every year – some 361 kilograms per person – a staggering amount that contributes to the 1.3 billion tonnes of food that is wasted globally, as estimated by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
“Food wastage is a growing issue in Australia and globally. As farmers, we work hard to nurture and grow food to sustain our population, and it is important to us to ensure that that food goes towards nourishing people, rather than ending up in our rubbish bins,” NFF CEO, Matt Linnegar said.
“And that’s not taking into the account the wastage that occurs between paddock and plate – approximately 40 percent of fruit and vegetables are discarded before they even reach supermarkets because of high consumer standards about appearance. That’s perfectly good produce going to waste for no good reason.”
or
In the bigger community, what can we do??
One such charity organisation Foodbank looks at reducing waste.
.............. one charitable hostel in Sydney serves 47,000 meals every month to hungry men. All these meals are donated. Consider donating surplus stock for charitable use. Even if this may involve some extra work and incur some extra cost.
We need to create a more sustainable and healthier environment for current and future generations. If achieving this objective simultaneously reduces superfluous waste while providing nutritious meals to the needy; then it is to our universal benefit.
