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I mentioned above that we have this composting operation, and I mean serious pile of stuff, but left out a few details.
In our community there are 2 organic markets, the regular market and the produce distributor. We drive a late model Subaru Outback which has a spacious rear cargo area. As frequently as possible we hit the rear of these 4 businesses.
Each day the guy in the produce department goes through and clips leaves and culls the veggie bins, discarding anything that isn't simply perfect. Into a large cardboard box (at the organic markets) or a 50-gallon plastic bag (at the regular market) goes potatoes, onions, zukes, heads of lettuce, tomatoe, chard, and every imagineable vegetable and fruit. Those go to the rear of the store, with the regular market & produce distributor dumping their bags in the dumpster, and the organic guys placing the box on the ground knowing that it will only be there an hour or so before someone picks it up (frequently me.)
It is simply unspeakable, in this community with a population of 5000 or so, that so much food is thrown away. It is simply not unusual for us to retrieve on a single outing 2-3 of those huge bags from Ray's, 2-3 boxes (banana crate size) from Mountain Song, another box from Berryvale. And when we hit General Produce, sometimes we get so much that we nearly have to go home - unload - and go back for more. Some nights we simply could not fit all of it in the car. The recyclying runs we make to get rid of all the cardboard becomes silly. Indeed, we wanted to shred and compost the cardboard as well, but it clogs the shipper and didn't work out well.
The bottom line is that much of the produce that comes from these bags and boxes are still edible, and all we end up having to do is cut out a brown spot. Or with radishes, for example, cut and pitch the green tops - the radishes are still just fine.
We have to retrain our shoppers to accept the food that the rest of the world does readily, and perhaps end up with more to sell/share.
I mentioned above that we have this composting operation, and I mean serious pile of stuff, but left out a few details.
In our community there are 2 organic markets, the regular market and the produce distributor. We drive a late model Subaru Outback which has a spacious rear cargo area. As frequently as possible we hit the rear of these 4 businesses.
Each day the guy in the produce department goes through and clips leaves and culls the veggie bins, discarding anything that isn't simply perfect. Into a large cardboard box (at the organic markets) or a 50-gallon plastic bag (at the regular market) goes potatoes, onions, zukes, heads of lettuce, tomatoe, chard, and every imagineable vegetable and fruit. Those go to the rear of the store, with the regular market & produce distributor dumping their bags in the dumpster, and the organic guys placing the box on the ground knowing that it will only be there an hour or so before someone picks it up (frequently me.)
It is simply unspeakable, in this community with a population of 5000 or so, that so much food is thrown away. It is simply not unusual for us to retrieve on a single outing 2-3 of those huge bags from Ray's, 2-3 boxes (banana crate size) from Mountain Song, another box from Berryvale. And when we hit General Produce, sometimes we get so much that we nearly have to go home - unload - and go back for more. Some nights we simply could not fit all of it in the car. The recyclying runs we make to get rid of all the cardboard becomes silly. Indeed, we wanted to shred and compost the cardboard as well, but it clogs the shipper and didn't work out well.
The bottom line is that much of the produce that comes from these bags and boxes are still edible, and all we end up having to do is cut out a brown spot. Or with radishes, for example, cut and pitch the green tops - the radishes are still just fine.
We have to retrain our shoppers to accept the food that the rest of the world does readily, and perhaps end up with more to sell/share.