If you're on of those people who despises food waste, like me...

[Thisusernameistakenagain]

Why?
I cant put my finger on it. I would understand if I were brought up impoverished but I wasnt and neither were my parents. They had less than me but definitely not unhealthy or malnourished etc. I didnt have it drummed into me to not waste food either. I just despise it!
Pre covid I had friends round. I made potato wedges to soak up the wine. We didn't use them all. When I came down in the morning one friend had kindly cleaned up, and threw the remaining ones straight in the bin! Almost a full tray.

I was recently seeing someone and when they stayed over I asked them to take home food theyd brought and not consumed as it wasnt the sort of thing I'd eat. 'Eew no! Wouldnt eat it after being in the car not fridge! Chuck it!'

I've lived with people who will make a whole pie,if not all eaten in one setting, half goes in the bin. It really winds me up. I don't think about the 'starving people in other parts of the world' as justification for this sort of thing as it hardly directly affects.

But I'm pretty militant about it. I save food or freeze it if possible. Make stock from unused veg parts. Anything totally inedible goes in compost.
I'm the same with any sort of waste really. I accosted a neighbour going to the tip the other day and asked if I could take the plantpots he was chucking!

Why am I like this, with no 'cause and effect' reason?
Why are you? :)

[DimidDavilby]

@Gwenhwyfar yes I did. Did you see where you had an icebox you could get a bit of it in? Hence, freeze what you can.

[Thisusernameistakenagain]

The wedges were in the fridge although I'd not have cared if they weren't the car wouldn't have bothered me unless it were ice cream or meat or such and a long journey. Bread and biscuits or stuff-fine IMO :)

[BuzzingTheBee]

Were the potato wedges in the fridge? And I might be iffy with the food in the car...

[DeRigueurMortis]

@notafanoftheman

I once had a new boyfriend who ate one portion from a roast chicken and binned the rest. I dumped him pronto.

That's just 😳.

Anyone on MN could have used that produce meals for a family for a month 😂

[BertieBotts]

[notafanoftheman]

I once had a new boyfriend who ate one portion from a roast chicken and binned the rest. I dumped him pronto.

[BertieBotts]

Ooh yes actually good idea, PickaChew - I usually wait because I want it to have cooled down first but you're right, it would be fine to do it that way.

[womaninatightspot]

I do like to give OLIO a mention. It seems like such an obviously good idea. I've saved tonnes of food from going to landfill :)

[MirandaMarple]

@womaninatightspot

I hate food waste too. I actually collect food and redistribute it from the local supermarket. It can be completely random crisps/ biscuits with months left on these go to the community larder in the old phone boxes. Lots of veg/ fruit on it's best before date which is still fine to eat. Random selection of yellow stickered stuff a lot of which can be frozen.

If anyone is interested I use an app called OLIO it's free and you book a collection slot and post photos of what you collect on the app for others to claim. You keep 10% for yourself.

Yes, OLIO is brilliant but seems not very well known.

[MirandaMarple]

@Ruth2009 please tell me you are in tier 4 and your FIL isn't visiting for Christmas!

[MirandaMarple]

I am exactly the same. I've got better at labelling small amounts of leftovers for the freezer as eventually it'd get buried and I'd end up chucking.

My DH has a thing about tin foil. If it can be re-used he'll keep it. If he has sandwiches wrapped in foil, he'll use the same piece for his sandwiches the next day. When we cleared his late Mum's house we found loads of tin foil under the microwave neatly folded.

It's not that we are saving money, we just despise waste. I'd rather throw leftover food out to the fox than put it in the bin.

[PickAChew]

@BertieBotts I would decant some of the prepared sauce into a freezer container before you serve up.

[Ruth2009]

Last Christmas day, my father in law poured the remainder of my lovingly prepared gravy down the sink! I could have cried 😳

[BertieBotts]

I don't know where it comes from, but I hate throwing away unused stuff and I hate it when people eat too much and don't save any for leftovers - DH does this and it just annoys me. I will make a massive spaghetti bolognese thinking there will be 2-3 portions to save/freeze and I'll be lucky to end up with half of one. It's not because he's still hungry, he eats past the point of being full.

I think it might come from a money perspective as we didn't have much growing up although I don't remember consciously having to stretch out food.

[billy1966]

I don't police other people but I hate food waste. Always have.

Not a religious family but I agree with one of my lovely grandparents that believed it was a sin.

I only buy for a couple of days food generally over Christmas to avoid waste.

I use my freezer to avoid waste too.

[KarmaNoMore]

I think my obsession with avoiding waste was cemented by my council changing rubbish collection to twice a month and gave us small bins.

They won’t take anything that doesn’t fit in the bin.

[womaninatightspot]

I hate food waste too. I actually collect food and redistribute it from the local supermarket. It can be completely random crisps/ biscuits with months left on these go to the community larder in the old phone boxes. Lots of veg/ fruit on it's best before date which is still fine to eat. Random selection of yellow stickered stuff a lot of which can be frozen.

If anyone is interested I use an app called OLIO it's free and you book a collection slot and post photos of what you collect on the app for others to claim. You keep 10% for yourself.

[lljkk]

Think you need to view the food-toys for the baby as toys that are safe for babies to do what babies do (mouth everything), rather than being 'food waste'. I definitely can't care about a small number of 'wasted' calories in a cup of jelly or a few dozen ground cheerios.

Then again I let my babies mouth the sand, they survived fine btw

[Truelymadlydeeplysomeonesmum]

I don't like food waste and it is causing a dilemma at the moment actually.

I have a one year old and there are all these play activities you can do using food.

*Putting jelly on their highchair tray for them to mushabout.

*Blending cheerios into a sand like texture. So they can use as a safe sand.

Things like that. I feel so bad because she would love all that but just can't bring myself to waste food like that.

[EddieBananas]

Yes, me too. I hate any sort of waste.

My parents didn't have a lot of money but I grew up in a nice house in a good area. My Mum was a bit creative on the cooking front at times but we never went hungry.

I will always sell or give something to charity/freecycle if I want to get rid of something. It really pains me to actually put something in the bin.

I also absolutely hate wasting meat as I'm mindful that an animal has died to sit on my plate. I think a lot of people could benefit from being a bit more environmentally/ethically mindful.

[reprehensibleme]

Absolutely hate food waste. TBH I don't think we pay enough for the food we buy - considering the effort that goes in to producing it. We certainly pay a lot less for our food than many European countries. DH was a bit concerned when he saw Nigella using banana skins in curry that I'd be serving that up to him next - luckily I rarely buy bananas!

[BarbaraofSeville]

Morrisons sell individual eggs, not that it matters here because we go through at least a dozen a week.

[Gwenhwyfar]

"It would help if supermarkets catered more to smaller families/single people. I’ve been in quite a few supermarkets in Japan and they sell lots of loose veg, or you can buy say a quarter of a cabbage. You can even buy a single egg! Or a part loaf of bread. It’s so much easier there to just buy what you need if you’re alone or a small household."

Oh yes. As a single person with no car, I can't go to the massive supermarket just so I can buy a loose carrot and potato.

[Gwenhwyfar]

" I’m not going to force something down that I really don’t want. I don’t see how that’s any “better” than just throwing it."

Yep, getting indigestion because you feel you should finish your food isn't better than putting something in the bin.

[Gwenhwyfar]

[quote Avocadobathroom7]@Gwenhwyfar I've never had that issue in a restaurant! I usually leave still hungry no matter the portion

Mumski yes love yellow stickers here too.[/quote]
Wow! Restaurant portions are usually huge! Unless you go to very posh places?