Apparently, we Britons waste 4.1m tonnes of food very year. Food we buy and then throw away, black bananas, limp lettuce, whiffy ham and furry yoghurt are costing households an average of £420 every year. The PM Gordon Brown, on his way to the G8 summit in Japan, has urged us to stop wasting food in an effort to help combat rising living costs: "I am proposing that we take action to both increase the global supply of food and reduce unnecessary demand."
The BBCs Nick Robinson asks:
"Has Prudence left the Treasury to move into the nation's kitchens? Will 'Mr Brown's Book of Household Management' be the prime minister's next magnum opus? What tips does the PM have on how to turn your leftovers into a nice soup or a stew?"
Well, I've been doing this for years, as has, I'm sure, anyone who's had children. My parents grew up during the war, and their attitudes to food, formed by austerity and rationing, remained unchanged by the plenty of the 60s and 70s. My childhood was financially secure, but every third of fourth meal would still be 'Bizza'. Bits-a-this and bits-a-that. Bizza meals were never boring, indeed they carried with them an element of excitement and risk entirely lacking in a first-generation planned meal, like fish fingers and peas. What would Bizza be today? Would it succeed? As my mother produced various chopping, sawing, hammering and drilling noises from the kitchen, my sister and I would try to remember what was left in the fridge last night, and would make wild guesses as to what the meal would consist of. We were often right.
Whilst my own children were growing up, I had the good fortune to work from home, which meant that for many years I cooked my own weekday lunch. Without the minor inhibition of having to offer the meal to anyone else, (and therefore having to give it a name,) my imagination ran riot.
Supreme de Smiley Faces, with Half a Sausage in a Jus of its Own Making was a particular triumph. As was the Five-Day Curry© (you leave a bit in the pot on day one, add to it on day two etc etc.) I've been told there may have been Health and Safety implications to this dish, but hey, I'm still here.
So who are these households who waste £420 of food every year? Please get in touch. Oh, and can I have first dibs on your leftovers?
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