What’s the big deal about food waste?
Author Ellen Tout explains how eco warriors can help save the planet – from their kitchens
IT’S FAIR TO SAY THAT I’m more than a little obsessed with the issue of food waste. In our home, every scrap, offcut and leftover has a purpose. But what’s the problem with discarding those parts? In the UK, 70 per cent of the food we waste could have been eaten. If nothing else, that’s frittering away money! Our edible waste every year equates to more than 15 billion meals – enough to feed the entire population of Britain three meals a day for 11 weeks.*
When food reaches landfill, it can’t compost naturally and takes many years to degrade, releasing methane in the process. This is responsible for eight per cent of global greenhouse gases and is a direct contributor to the climate crisis. Composting food waste is a more environmentally friendly option – at home where possible – to reduce the impact of refuse van collections.
Food production uses valuable resources, including land, energy and water, as well as producing emissions from transport to warehouses, shops, our homes and the trucks that collect our waste. Bearing that in mind, wasting food just doesn’t make sense.
I try to employ the concept of ‘refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, recycle and rot’. Following this principle, there are many creative ways to make use of the food we perceive as waste. Coffee grounds give nitrogen to soil in the garden, onion skins make a health-boosting broth, coconut shells are perfect as upcycled planters, many seeds can be saved and planted, vegetable tops make a delicious, leafy pesto – and that’s just scratching the surface. We all have a role to play in protecting our planet and responsible food consumption is a powerful, yet simple, place to start.
It has been an immense honour to write this column for the past three years but, sadly, this will be my last. I’ve learned so much while researching it, and have been thrilled to receive emails and messages from readers, sharing tips and questions. Thank you! Please stay in touch via social media. I hope my book (see below) will provide inspiration to create nutritious and waste-free meals at home.
Upcycled beauty