Yesterday we finished the lentils, today we all but finished the rice, the curry powder has gone as are all the vegetables, stock cubes, kidney beans and oil. We have just enough coffee left for a couple of cups each tomorrow. Apart from the first few days I have not really felt hungry - although I am always ready to eat when it is meal time. I think that third loaf of bread, reduced to 35p made the difference, as it meant something to eat before bed, and a bit more throughout the day.
Breakfast and lunch today were as for most of the week, although as it was also a running day I had an extra (large) bowl of porridge and two slices of toast straight after my 10.5 mile run, to try and make up for the 1200 kC used up in exercise. Then this evening we had curried rice and bean burgers, with rice.
During this week we have kept most of our food in plastic box on the kitchen worktop, the veg. and milk in the fridge, with the bread in the freezer, just taking out the right amount for each day to make sure there was no risk of it going mouldy. Vegetable peelings have been boiled to make stock, carrots have been eaten without being peeled. All meals have been eaten and bowls scrapped. Very little has been thrown away.
It is estimated that 1 billion hungry people could be fed with the food that is thrown away in the UK, the US and Europe. And whilst supermarkets are partly responsible most of the food thrown away in this country is thrown away by normal households. Too much has been prepared, use by dates have been exceeded, food has not been stored properly, people don't know what to do with leftovers. And all that waste food needed to be grown, made, transported, packaged...Once again it is a case of those of us at the top of the pile using more than our fair share of the world's resources.
But what difference will it really make if I use a little less, and throw away less? That's always the question. What difference does it make if I recycle - but massive nations do nothing to reduce factory emissions? What difference will it make if I choose to only eat meat once or twice a week? But I just don't think we can afford to think that way. I need to do what I can - and one thing I can do is to waste less food, and encourage others to do the same.
Some comments by others taking part in the £7 challenge have been left on 'Get Planning'.
