How much food do you throw away?
Almost half the food the world produces (that’s 2bn tonnes) is wasted every year, yet there are 842 million hungry people in the world.
Crazy.
Our obsession with supermarket packaging dates and perfect looking food means that in the UK alone, around 18 million tonnes of food is wasted each year.
I spent last Friday with The Real Food Project Brighton. Their ‘pay as you feel’ cafe at One Church is fast becoming a popular place in the city to lunch. The food on offer is absolutely delicious. And it’s all from waste!
In the UK we have almost twice as much food than needed to fulfill the nutritional needs of our population.
The Real Food Project intercepts food destined for land fill and uses it to feed people who need it. Simple. The ‘pay what you can’ concept encourages diners to pay if they can but also to offer time to cover their lunch. Perhaps wash up or help out with one of their other tasks.
Delicious home made food from waste
According to UNICEF someone dies of starvation every 3.6 seconds. Usually it’s a child under the age of 5. It’s hard to even consider the enormity of this fact. In the time it’s taken to read this that’s around 10 people. 10 lives. Gone.
The number of people using food banks is set to pass one billion this year according to the Trussell Trust who manage over 400 banks across the UK.
Proper coffee and homemade cakes
The truth is, there is enough food in the world to feed everyone. With a shift in the way we use and distribute food we can make a difference. Initiatives like The Real Junk Food Project are changing the way we think about food. Making use of something that would otherwise be thrown away and feeding people that need it. Simple.
If you can support The Real Food Project visit their crowd funding page here. They plan to open a cafe 7 days a week feeding real food to people who need it. Let’s give them a hand. Or pop on down the One Church Brighton on Gloucester Place every Friday 1pm and enjoy a fabulous lunch and donate what you can.
Apparently the average British family throws out a fifth of it’s food. We certainly don’t in this house. How about you?
The Real Junk Food Project Brighton is part of the Real Junk Food Project network, created by Adam Smith.
#feedbelliesnotbins
a field somewhere 
This is a brilliant project, have been meaning to go in for AGES – you’ve inspired us. X x