Waste Not, Want Not

​I don't know about you... but in this house?

The End Of Summer = Crazy Busy 

Apologies for being off-line for a bit... The last two weeks alone had me driving over 2500 miles, moving horses, moving kids, Kids starting school (1st grade and 2 college girls)... all while trying to keep my sanity (that's still debatable).

As I said, we moved our horse 2 weeks ago. He now resides in the high mountain deserts of New Mexico with my parents; far away from many of the modern conveniences of life. No phone. No internet, really. It was nice to unplug. Being that far out causes you to think about other things as well. Water conservation and food availability being chief amongst them. This sparked quite a bit of discussion on sustainable efforts in the food industry and how conservation plays into it.

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First let’s look at the big picture - You can do this at home too. Take a standard sheet of paper (8.5” x 11”) and fold it into thirds. This represents the planet we live on (Earth, Terra, Third rock from the Sun for our intergalactic friends- If you’re in NM you must visit Roswell.). Slightly less than one section (30% of the page) is ALL of the land available on this planet. From this area, tear out a piece roughly the size of a business card (3.5” x 2”). This represents ALL the agricultural lands available. Everything that we can eat comes from here. Now fold that card in thirds. Tear off one section. The 2/3 section although agricultural land can only be used for grazing animals. It is not good soil for growing crops. The best use of this land is livestock. Cows, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens, etc. That last slice (roughly 1” x 2”) is where we grow ALL of the vegetation fit for our consumption. Roughly 2% of this planet grows nearly all of our food for the entire population of the globe.

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Our planet currently holds about 7.7 Billion people. That populaion is expected to grow to near 10 Billion by 2050. It is estimated that nearly 45% of childhood deaths globally are connected to a lack of food. This is 5 Million children per year. In the US of A, nearly 1 in 7 people are hungry from lack of food. Yet, 1/3 of all food produced is thrown away.
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At one time or another, we have all thrown away food. Maybe you purchased too many eggs from the grocery store and they have reached their expiration date or maybe you have simply forgotten about that loaf of bread in the back of the pantry. Did you know that nearly 40% of the food in the United States is never eaten? In fact, Americans wasted 33.79 million tons of food in 2010 alone. That is enough to fill the Empire State Building 91 times! The typical American family of four wastes up to 1,160 pounds of uneaten food annually.

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​If the United States were to waste 5% less food, that amount could feed 4 million Americans. If Americans wasted 15% less, it would be enough to feed 25 million people on an annual basis. So, in a time when there are thousands of starving human beings and a planet suffering from unnecessary waste, it is of paramount importance that we take the time to reconsider our food consumption habits.
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There is an environmental impact to food waste as well. About 1/3 of US diet related emissions of Green House Gases (GHG) are caused in food production that is wasted at retail and by the consumer. Those emissions equate to about 33 Million vehicles. If you think about the food already rotting in landfills that adds an addition 30%.
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That waste has another effect- the bottom line. Just an extra day or two on grocery shelves could save some serious money. Selling a product that lasts an extra one or two days at a consumer’s home helps develop a perception of superior quality which results in higher brand loyalty.

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Additional Tips to Reduce Food Waste at home.

So… I hope this helps demonstrate the problem. What are the solutions? Portion Control? Alternate proteins? GMOs? The ugly food movement? Urban Agriculture? Better labels? All of these have some merit. I don’t believe there is a silver bullet though. It will be a combination of these and other solutions. Lets break these down a bit.

Portion control- Not just good for diets. If you find yourself leaving a lot of food on your plate that you are throwing away, you should try taking about half that. Think about it this way, the average meal costs about $8. If you throw away a mostly full plate per day, you are wasting $56 per week or about $3000 per year. You are no longer just wasting food. If you are using paper plates or plastic utensils, you’re adding even more to that cost, not to mention the effects on the environment.

If you are like me, you may tend to prepare large meals for few people. In my case, I have 4 kids. 3 no longer live at home yet I haven’t figured out how to reduce the meal recipe size yet. Don’t let that force you to overload your plate. Freeze portions, make “lunches” for the week, or have friends over. Proper handling of leftovers can help reduce your waste. Use shallow dishes, make sure you label and date them so you can keep track of what is in your fridge.

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Chirps Protein Mix. It's a great tasting alternative and one my family uses frequently. They offer a variety of products that even my picky teenagers are on board with.

​Alternate proteins- There are a huge number of “new” products coming on the market to address this issue. For example, BKs Impossible Whopper, various nut substitutes, or the cell cultured meatball. I am not really a fan of these. The amount of innovation is impressive, but the waste created for these “environmentally friendly” proteins is ridiculous and often worse than conventional meat production. They also feed on fears that have been created in the market. There are great alternatives out there though. Entomophagy is practiced in 80% of the world but is frowned upon by the western world. The amount of feed to produce 1lb of protein of beef is 25lbs. For pork, 9lbs, chicken, 4.5lbs, crickets, about 2lbs. The amount of water is very similar. In addition to the protein and fats we get from traditional meats, Insects also provide some carbs, amino acids, vitamins, and minerals. This makes insects not only more environmentally friendly but better from a nutritional standpoint as well.

​GMO’s- This will need to be the subject of another blog, but every organism is in some way a GMO. That includes you and your children. Don’t be fooled by the hype of heirlooms or Certified Non-GMO. It’s just marketing. If you don’t think so, explain non-GMO salt. I’ll wait…

With modern molecular methods we know and can control way more on a genetic level than we ever could with “natural” or traditional breeding. We can make foods healthier for you, more resistant to pests and disease, and get them to grow with less resources or in less hospitable environments. GMO’s are a good thing.

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Companies like Imperfect Produce are making it their mission to reduce waste by "changing the way we eat and think about food, we can make the world a little better."

Hydroponics: Farming of the future?

The ugly food movement- this is another solution I LOVE! A vast majority of produce in retail is discarded because its not the right size, shape, or otherwise looks “wrong.” Don’t get me wrong. We eat with our eyes first, but these products still are good, safe and healthy. Like ugly people, you know who you are, they have value. What are you going to do with that carrot? Chop it up? Juice it? Stew it? How often are you going to consume it whole as is? Does it really matter if it has an extra leg? You can do a search for “imperfect produce” and find services that will ship this often discarded but perfectly good food to your door, often for less than your average “pretty” grocery purchases. Try it!

Urban Agriculture- techniques like hydroponics, aquaponics, plant computers, etc. allow for us to use spaces in traditional urban deserts such as warehouses and vacant lots to grow fresh healthy produce for those areas. I’ve worked with a few community gardens and organizations like Good Life Growing that are developing these methods and working with the locals to give them the empowerment of a good meal. James Forbes has some wonderful stories about how his group has uplifted neighborhoods in the St Louis area. Look him up. GLG has even started a “Greencubator” to help start-ups in this arena.

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Taken from the 2014 July issue of “Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety.”

Better Labeling- I saved this for last because we as an industry or in conjunction with our Federal partners need to fix this. There are somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 different date labels on products. This leads to mass confusion not just for the consumer but even for us pros. I would love to see these reduced to 3 dates, “Produced on”, “Best by”, and “Expired by”. “Produced on,” should be fairly self-explanatory and allows for first in, first out traceability. “Best by” is strictly a quality measurement. The peak of flavor and texture if you will. Still safe after just maybe slightly less tasty. “Expired on” is the safety concern. Most products break down. Enzymes wreak havoc, Oils go rancid, potential bacterial contaminants are statistically more prevalent. So, we do need a discard date of some sort. Just remember, these dates are based on expected conditions. Improper handling can shorten shelf life. Conversely, Ideal handling can extend it.

I hope this gave you a little bit to chew on, but not too much ?!

Until Next week! 
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Sláinte
James

Science | Safety | Sustainability
http://www.ThatFoodSafetyGuy.com
Instagram▫️Facebook▫️Twitter @ThatFSGuy

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