A student working on the Scholars communications team was recently catching me up on her time spent studying abroad in Copenhagen. Among her tales of city architecture and countryside bike rides, she mentioned that her host family had the most surprising habit. They saved ALL of their food.
The family kept scraps and leftovers for add-ons in other meals or waited to accumulate enough to invent something new entirely. It got me thinking. Sure, I’ll stash a few leftovers in the fridge to reheat, but could I be stretching my food a little farther? Or helping to put food on someone else’s table?
The answer is a resounding yes.
Food waste is an upwardly trending topic. Folks are starting to advocate for ugly produce and growing skeptical of “expiration dates.” Just last week, the USDA and EPA announced the United States’ first-ever national food waste reduction goal, calling for a 50-percent reduction by 2030.
According to the USDA, food loss and waste is single largest component of disposed U.S. municipal solid waste and accounts for a significant portion of U.S. methane emissions. In addition, experts project that reducing food losses by just 15 percent would provide enough food for more than 25 million Americans every year, helping to sharply reduce incidences of food insecurity for millions.
A band of chefs around the world are doing their part, taking on so-called Trash Cooking – serving up dishes that make use of food parts that we’d likely consider garbage, and the menus are wildly creative. Bull’s penis: it’s what’s for dinner.
Waste not want not: the art of trash cooking
One local restaurant has been praised for doing a little Trash Cooking of their own as part of their “Trash to Treasure” menu. Check out what D.C. teashop, Teaism, is making out of cabbage butts, chard stems, and bread crusts.
Teaism is trying to reduce food waste, one cabbage butt at a time
NPR and PBS recently covered the movement:
Have you tried any Trash Cooking, in a restaurant or in your own kitchen? Do tell.
Feature image photo credit: Silo.