Write down what food you throw away this week. Aim to reduce it by a third by eating leftovers and shopping more carefully – using a list and planning your meals.
WAR ON WASTE
When all of them had enough to eat, Jesus spoke to his disciples. “Gather the leftover pieces,” he said. “Don’t waste anything.” John 6:12
In the feeding of the 5000, Jesus told the disciples to collect up all the food and not to waste anything. I wonder who the people were who received those leftovers? the elderly, the orphans, the physically challenged, who had not been able to walk to where Jesus was preaching.
How would Jesus feel about the amount of waste we create and throw away now?
At the Rio + 20 conference food waste was highlighted as a key problem. “ Food wasted by consumers in high-income countries (222 million tons) is roughly equal to the entire food production of sub-Saharan Africa (230 million tons).”
Here is South Africa a staggering one third of annual food production is wasted! Some of it is on the farms, where products are considered “substandard quality” and are left to rot. Some of it is during transportation from farm to shop. More food is wasted in shops as it passes its sell by date.
And then there is me, and you. We buy too much, cook too much, leave too much on our plates.
Our challenge today is to write down what food you throw away this week. Commit yourself to shopping more carefully, preserving leftovers, giving to those in need, and composting to improve your garden….