[Steph Hen]

I hear this argument, but don't agree JulieWall. It's a mentality about making the most of what you have when you have it. Any one who grows their fruit and veg knows about dealing with gluts when they come along. I might eat several plums a day when the tree ripens, then make a few puddings, jam and some in the freezer for winter.

Finding that there's an offer on at the supermarket just makes me behave in the same way. I have a fridge, freezer and can be creative enough to use four trays of 1/2 price chicken thighs, a massive bag of tomatoes, or whatever, without it getting boring.

That and the fact that most things in the supermarket aren't fresh, so as discussed previously, I'm all for ignoreing the dates and stocking up... 8 jars of mayonnaise, or a whole shelf of tinned tomatoes, at half the price I'd normally pay = good stuff!

[JulieWall]

I was just speaking for myself and saying how hard it can be, not criticising anybody's mentality  I didn't think it read that way personally 
My point was about the massive pressure on consumers that these companies indulge in and to simply say we all need to be mindful of not being manipulated. What you are doing is sensible (I do it too  ) and selectively taking advantage of these offers for things you would buy anyway is just playing them at their own game. Loss leaders are to lure you into the shopping environment, but if your basket is filled with mainly loss leader products, the supermarket's tactics have failed.
By 'perishable' I was referring to products with use by dates on such as cooked meats, pies, yoghurt, dairy products, etc. Fruit and veg to me are fresh produce (name is misleading I agree).
Don't fall into the trap of presuming that everyone else has the luxury of freezer space - or even a freezer, some people don't have the money, the space or may even feel that it conflicts with their green ethics. There isn't a one-size-fits-all answer but we do need to be more aware.

[Fleecewife]

<<There isn't a one-size-fits-all answer but we do need to be more aware>>

That is true.  When I was at school (a VERY long time ago) we were given one of the most valuable lessons I have had.  This was about the power of advertising and how people were manipulated.  Not only are there whole companies whose staff are dedicated to convincing the masses to do something they wouldn't otherwise do, but others spend their entire working lives, presumably with grant aid, to carry out high level research into sales propaganda.
Since that lesson, so most of my life, I have kept a very cynical attitude towards advertising and product placement.
There is also a more subtle influence on people's buying habits which comes from social pressure, what you are 'expected' to do.  Many of us on TAS are immune to those influences, as is proven by our choice of smallholding as a way of life.   Many of us live on very tight budgets too, but we also tend to be of the mindset that says 'grow your own'.
Most city dwellers tend to conform and anyway don't always have somewhere to grow food.  Even those with gardens are 'expected', or so they feel, to grow flowers in their gardens, although that attitude seems to be changing.
I think one bit of evidence of the power of advertising is that some people who are living on the edge and have very little money don't spend it wisely.  They buy white sliced bread, crisps, ready cut chips and chicken. (OK they buy more than that - cigarettes  ))  So perhaps this is partly to do with basic education.  Lots of you have mentioned that you are careful housewives when it comes to cooking, but many folk these days genuinely don't know how to prepare a meal from scratch, or to make the most of gluts to prepare for leaner times.  Even the meteoric rise in the number of chef-y type programmes doesn't always show people how to prepare good nutritious food at home - some do though and this must be a good thing.  I don't watch the soaps so I don't really know their contents but if I visit people who have the TV on with one of these showing, there just seems to be a lot of shouting, aggro, stabbings, teenage tantrums and illicit sex.  If these icons of public adoration were seen preparing a good nutritious meal from produce they'd grown in the allotment, or assiduously sorting their rubbish into their coloured bins for recycling,  that would send a different message and help to educate people.

I think the problem of food wastage has very different causes in different parts of the globe.  We too had a food safe to store anything perishable, in the coolest part of the old stone-built dairy, and my mum would stand the bottles of milk in cold water with a cloth over the top, so the evaporation from the constantly wet cloth kept the milk cool, but it didn't last as long as today.  However, in very hot countries, if you don't have a fridge then you have to be very canny about preserving food. I have seen food stored in the moist ground, shaded from the sun, but you have to have the ground, and you have to have the knowledge of how to do it.

There seems also to be a trend away from cooking at home to eating out, either in restaurants or takeaways.  I think there is maybe an even greater wastage from restaurants than from private homes.  It always seems strange to me that those at the upper end of the income bracket have enormous, expensive stainless steel kitchens, but nothing in the fridge, because they don't ever eat at home.  This seems to be an American trend which is spreading here, if TV and literature is anything to go by (which it probably isn't)

I'll have a look back through the reading stuff for my Global Food Security course for a pie chart which shows the proportion of food wasted at each stage and I seem to recall (there's a lot of info for my poor brain to retain) that by far the biggest wastage comes from 'domestic' sources, which I think includes supermarkets.  No time at the moment but I'll look later.

Thank you all so much for taking part in this discussion - I'm really enjoying everything you all have to say 

[Ina]

A big part of the problem is that we all expect - or rather, the supermarkets tell us that we should all expect - to have every type of food available at all times... And because you can't plan 100% for either demand or yield, farmers need to over produce all the time, resulting in fields of perfectly good produce being ploughed in again. Would it really be that terrible if you couldn't get broccoli today, because the shop's run out - or no carrots tomorrow?

[mowhaugh]

salad has to be one of the worst, we don't grow our own (yet) so cant pick fresh and so much of it goes off so quickly...

biggest area of waste in our house too.

[northfifeduckling]

and it's the easiest thing to grow, even in a container , just get a box of living salads and pick apart and plant 

The topic of restaurants is a very important one ! Just watching some of the shows that partially are filmed in restaurants - how much unserved food is put in the bin because it doesn't look right or is 10 seconds overcooked makes me cry each time! That doesn't count in what customers haven't finished...bring back the pig buckets and urban pigs!

[RUSTYME]

Ok , so i don't go to the s'market 3 times a week , not even 3 times a year actually , but when i do go with someone , the tricks don't work on me . I buy what i want and nowt else .
If i want cheese and the one i usually have is £3 but another is on offer at  £1 , yes ok , i'll buy the £1 one . But i only buy what i want cheese , i am imnune to their corruption .
 Read up about Edward Bernays , the propaganda man . It will open your eyes to many things .
 

[Lesley Silvester]

A local supermarket gives their goods that have reached their sell by date to the Salvation Army for their homeless project. On one occasion, there was at least one case of bananas which had reached its sell-by date so out it had to go. These bananas were still green so nowhere near being unfit to eat. They were also given far more bread than they could use. Fortunately, the new manager seems better at ordering and their is less waste but that appalled me.


I'm like most folk on here in that I hate waste. If we don't eat it, the dogs or goats do or it goes in the wormery or on the compost heap. My worms must be sick to death of tea bags and egg shells because that's usually all they get.