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WFAEats
Welcome to WFAEats — a fun adventure where we explore all things tasty and interesting in the Charlotte food scene. We want to share stories, recipes and culinary escapades and hear about yours!

You Are What You Waste

jbloom
/
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By Parth Shah

In May, the USDA enacted a controversial set of rules for meat labeling, requiring retailers to provide information on where the meat was born, bred and slaughtered.

Though the new measures have been met with criticism from the meat industry, consumers have shown strong support for the more specific labeling.

Today’s consumer is increasingly interested in where their food comes from. Sales for locally grown produce are at an all-time high and the number of companies investing in organic products is booming.

But is there enough concern about where our food goes?

According to author and food waste expert Jonathan Bloom, there isn’t.

“Every day, America wastes enough food to fill the Rose Bowl,” states Bloom in the introduction to his book American Wasteland.

Food waste, as defined by Bloom, includes all edible items which are unconsumed due to human action or inaction. The average family of four loses $1,350 each year due to food waste.

As the United States continues to fill its landfills with squandered food resources - solutions, both large and small scale, must be enacted in order to prevent waste and ensure a sustainable food future.

Want to learn more? Listen to WFAE's Charlotte Talkswith Jonathan Bloom and others about the environmental, ethical and economic cost of food waste in America.

  

 

Parth is a summer intern for WFAE's Charlotte Talks.

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