Oprah

[MsDiva2007]

I love Freegans. If we had more dumpsters here I'd do it. The point they are trying to make is the excess in this country (and Canada has a good Freegan community too). We waste so much.

It's not about being able to afford the food it's the fact that people around the world are dieing because they have no food and we throw out perfectly good food because someone doesn't want to spend money on a bruised apple. If they keep buying food it keeps the demand up. If the demand stays up production stays up. It's taking the demand out of the supply/demand chain since the almighty dollar is the only thing that matters in our society.

It's statement on waste. We a disposable wasteful society that revolves around money. They are taking out the dollar aspect. They are doing what they can to cut down on waste by consuming what other people toss... etc.

This episode further makes me thankful I don't participate in potlucks and eat everyone's cooking. The thought of eating veggies that came out a dumpster makes my tummy hurt.

[Gutmutter]

Here's another reason not to eat potlucks. My mom e-mailed us this week that she made something for a potluck out of bologna she had had since Thanksgiving!! Her reasoning was that the package had never been opened. She group-mailed us 3 sisters and we all came down like an avalanche on her. On topic - I thought the Freegan show was fabulous. I'm glad there's a movement and I hope it gains members from the show. I was suprprised they didn't talk about the laws that make fast food places throw out any food remaining after every meal time. I talk about that in my classroom when I make a continuum line on the board of where we are in the world's wealth.

[ClosetRTWatcher]

Wouldn't the community be better served if they used their connections to get that food transferred to the needy?

Probably, but unfortunately I think there are legal problems associated with that.
I am no lawyer, but I'm pretty sure if they transferred that food to the needy and someone got sick then they (either the organization distributing it or the original business donating it) would be open to a lawsuit from the person who became ill.

My fav pop culture reference on this topic was the Seinfeld episode where they opened the bakery that only sold the tops of muffins and they donated the bottoms to the needy. Then they went out of business after the needy people got mad at them because they said they deserved the tops of the muffins too.

[causingchaos]

We have a charity in town here (I live in an area with a lot of poverty) that gets the expired produce from the grocery stores and every week or two will give it away to whoever wants it (no income limits to get it). And our local food shelf will give out expired milk and we have a tasty bread store that does the same with expired bread (we all call it the used bread store).

There's also a small group of homeless people that will travel to fast food joints at closing time and collect the food that is going to get thrown out and it's an obscene amount of food that gets thrown out.

[misskitty]

Has anyone bought and read the book that Oprah is featuring?
Ekhart Tolle - A New Earth

Anyone joining in on the big discussions on the internet webcast?

[babyfat101]

hey chaos - what town do you live in? sounds progressive. when i lived in houston, a store wanted to donate day old bread to the women's shelter, but some govt agency interfered...people in shelters need to eat fresh foods - not "old". i personally disagree...old food is better than none.

[causingchaos]

I live in a rural community.

When I worked at the youth shelter in town (that took kids in who were removed from their homes by police because of abuse and stuff) we had donated expired food from the local grocery stores there too.

It grosses me out to think about how much food gets thrown out looking at all the recycled food that I've seen in various places.

[jacobson00]

we had donated expired food from the local grocery stores there too.

expired food?

[Gutmutter]

The date on most foods is the date it must be sold by - not when it goes bad.

[Lois Lane]

When Nate does those home makeovers for people, do they get it done for free or do the homeowners have to pay for all the work and the stuff they get? I ask 'cause it seems like the homeowners are given freebies in exhange for publicity (e.g. Oprah or Nate thank Sears or whoever)...but then again, one never knows!