Our landfill wedding
Couple serve up feast made from food waste … and guests had no idea!
THE bride looked beautiful, the groom was beaming, and the food was delicious. To the 140 guests, the Mainwaring wedding was simply wonderful.
But unbeknownst to them, the happy couple had a big secret.
And it wasn’t until the speeches began that all was revealed. The lavish wedding breakfast that everyone had been tucking into? It was actually made with food destined for landfill.
Cherie Harris and James Mainwaring wanted their special day to leave as little mark on the environment as possible.
To do this, the couple enlisted the help of food waste charity The Real Junk Food Project to create a menu made up entirely of food heading for the bin.
And to surprise their guests, they kept their rather thrifty secret under their hats until the meal had been served and the speeches began. Mrs Mainwaring, 36, from Leeds, said: ‘We wanted the food to speak for itself. They were very surprised but also very impressed.
‘The food was absolutely beautiful and really made our day. We could not have asked for anything better.’
The charity collects food from supermarkets, sandwich shops and fast food chains that would otherwise be thrown out because of health and safety regulations.
However, all of it is still perfectly safe for human consumption and they are not breaking any laws by feeding guests with it.
Mrs Mainwaring and her saxophonist husband, 29, who have daughter Iona, four months, had booked the unusual catering a year ago.
But, because of how the food is sourced, the couple had no idea what would be served up – or even if there would be anything to eat at all on the day. Emma Buckle of the charity said that when they are catering for an upcoming wedding they will do their best to freeze any suitable items in advance. But other than that, she admitted, the charity relies a lot on ‘praying to the food fairies’.
Luckily for the Mainwarings and their guests, there was enough for a which village magnificent was hall in held Leeds spread at East on at Saturday. the Keswick event, They were treated to a buffet groaning with dishes including a spinach and chickpea curry, chicken and bacon pies and ratatouille, all made by a chef ready to turn leftovers into weddingworthy off, they cuisine. had a And doughnut to top tower it all wedding cake – made with sweet leftovers from Greggs, naturally. As well as being good for the environment, the arrangement was also easy on the wallet – a hot buffet costs as little as £6 a head, or £840 in total. According to a survey of 4,000 brides by website Hitched, the average cost of wedding food was £3,353.
And it wasn’t just the food that was eco-friendly – Mrs Mainwaring’s wedding dress was lined with material made from bamboo pulp, and all the invitations and decorations were homemade.