Forty Percent of Food Produced in America is Not Eaten
No, I did not make up that statistic. That is one of the startling truths of this country that was just (thankfully) brought to my attention in the Food Network special 'The Big Waste.'
Forty percent. Think about that. Take all the food you eat a year, AND DOUBLE IT. Now imagine that for the ENTIRE COUNTRY.
There's been a big push in recent years to organic, sustainable, local, using generally non-mainstream ingredients. I love it, it's great. I've asked my local supermarket for marrow bones and when salted-fatback appeared out of nowhere on their shelves I went straight home and Google'd how it could be used.
But let's face it, mainstream America is not going to go out and buy non-mainstream items. Even those of us that like to learn and try new ingredients, (one of the main reasons I watch Food Network honestly, is to introduce myself to new items), nine times out of ten come home from work and make something fast and easy that we've made a hundred times before.
I'm not asking you to start purchasing offal, insects or strange ingredients that are commonplace in other countries. Most supermarkets don't carry them for one thing, and the majority of America is conditioned to think it's bad/wrong/gross for another.
But think about these facts...besides the startling percentage in the title...
* For every American approximately 200 pounds of food is thrown in the trash a year.
* American convenience stores, restaurants, and supermarkets throw out 27 MILLION TONS of edible food a year.
* America wastes 5 BILLION eggs a year.
(Statistics from the Food Network special 'The Big Waste.')
Is there anything wrong with all that food being thrown away? No.
If there is a blemish on a tomato, if the egg is slightly smaller than the rest, it gets thrown away.
Now think about this...
* In 2009, 43.6 million people (14.3 percent) were in poverty.
* In 2010, 48.8 million Americans lived in food insecure households, 32.6 million adults and 16.2 million children.
* In 2010, 4.8 percent of all U.S. households (5.6 million households) accessed emergency food from a food pantry one or more times.
* In 2010, 59.2 percent of food-insecure households participated in at least one of the three major Federal food assistance programs -Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly Food Stamp Program), The National School Lunch Program, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.
* There is an estimated 925 million hungry people in the world.
(Satistics from Feeding America & WorldHunger.org)
Makes you a little sick to think about doesn't it?
So next time you go to the supermarket grab that tomato that has a spot on it (you can cut it off!), grab those carrots that have brown stems on them (you don't eat the stem!), grab the meat that's on sale because it's a few days from being past it's 'best by' date (best by dates are NOT expiration dates!).
Adapt. Educate. What it looks like doesn't matter, if it's safe, if it's fresh, what matters is the taste of the end result.
I urge you all to watch The Big Waste, and pass on the information. Teach yourself and others to grab the less than perfect, I'd be willing to bet it still tastes delicious.
"We've been spoiled in America, we don't want to work for our food anymore."
-Iron Chef Michael Symon
Forty percent. Think about that. Take all the food you eat a year, AND DOUBLE IT. Now imagine that for the ENTIRE COUNTRY.
There's been a big push in recent years to organic, sustainable, local, using generally non-mainstream ingredients. I love it, it's great. I've asked my local supermarket for marrow bones and when salted-fatback appeared out of nowhere on their shelves I went straight home and Google'd how it could be used.
But let's face it, mainstream America is not going to go out and buy non-mainstream items. Even those of us that like to learn and try new ingredients, (one of the main reasons I watch Food Network honestly, is to introduce myself to new items), nine times out of ten come home from work and make something fast and easy that we've made a hundred times before.
I'm not asking you to start purchasing offal, insects or strange ingredients that are commonplace in other countries. Most supermarkets don't carry them for one thing, and the majority of America is conditioned to think it's bad/wrong/gross for another.
But think about these facts...besides the startling percentage in the title...
* For every American approximately 200 pounds of food is thrown in the trash a year.
* American convenience stores, restaurants, and supermarkets throw out 27 MILLION TONS of edible food a year.
* America wastes 5 BILLION eggs a year.
(Statistics from the Food Network special 'The Big Waste.')
Is there anything wrong with all that food being thrown away? No.
If there is a blemish on a tomato, if the egg is slightly smaller than the rest, it gets thrown away.
Now think about this...
* In 2009, 43.6 million people (14.3 percent) were in poverty.
* In 2010, 48.8 million Americans lived in food insecure households, 32.6 million adults and 16.2 million children.
* In 2010, 4.8 percent of all U.S. households (5.6 million households) accessed emergency food from a food pantry one or more times.
* In 2010, 59.2 percent of food-insecure households participated in at least one of the three major Federal food assistance programs -Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly Food Stamp Program), The National School Lunch Program, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.
* There is an estimated 925 million hungry people in the world.
(Satistics from Feeding America & WorldHunger.org)
Makes you a little sick to think about doesn't it?
So next time you go to the supermarket grab that tomato that has a spot on it (you can cut it off!), grab those carrots that have brown stems on them (you don't eat the stem!), grab the meat that's on sale because it's a few days from being past it's 'best by' date (best by dates are NOT expiration dates!).
Adapt. Educate. What it looks like doesn't matter, if it's safe, if it's fresh, what matters is the taste of the end result.
I urge you all to watch The Big Waste, and pass on the information. Teach yourself and others to grab the less than perfect, I'd be willing to bet it still tastes delicious.
"We've been spoiled in America, we don't want to work for our food anymore."
-Iron Chef Michael Symon