Almost Free Food.
You’ve heard of Freegans, people who recycle free food and other items that have been thrown in the trash because they don’t like to see waste. They usually look for food that is still in its package and not too far beyond its expiration date. But did you know that you can literally GROW food from the Freegans free trash? Yes, after they have prepared and enjoyed their recycled dinner MORE food could be grown from their fresh food scraps! You can do this with your own scraps as well. Even though you must wait for it to grow, this is very close to getting free food.
All that is needed is a good place to do a little gardening. A space in a garden or a large plant pot with sufficient potting mix will do. Grab the uncooked potato peelings from dinner before they are tossed in the disposal. Trim pieces to have at least one eye and a bit of the potato. Try to get a piece 1/4″ to 1/2″ thick. Eyes are the little white nubs that form on the outside of the potato usually in late winter, early spring. Pictures They will become the plant stalk and leaves if given the chance. Place the trimmed piece of potato skin on a plate and just barely cover the bottom half of it with fresh water. When the eyes begin to swell and grow it’s time to put the peelings in the ground. Place the potato peelings on three inches of soil in the bottom of a container or in the garden, cover with about two inches of soil or vermiculite and water in. Over the next several months, keep adding more soil so the forming potatoes remain well covered.
Now go rescue a couple of carrot tops. Place them in water or directly in soil-cut side down. Both the potato peels and the carrot top will sprout in just a couple days. The carrot tops will continue to grow and produce lacy foliage, flowers and then seed which can be harvested and planted.
Let’s go back to the scrap bucket for a fresh pineapple top. If the Pineapple is still whole, using gloves twist the top off of the fruit. Let the top dry for a day then plant. If the fruit has already been cut then trim away anyleft over fruit and let the top dry for a day then plant this in soil in a similar manner as the carrot using a much larger container. It may take several years before it happens but if the pineapple plant that grows from your top gets the right environmental conditions you may just be blessed with a fresh home grown pineapple someday.
A Garlic clove is its own seed, so technically they aren’t grown from a part you would normally throw away, but it’s just so easy you may want to save a couple cloves to start more. The clove can be planted as is or remove the “skin”, recommended when it is very dried. With the wider flat part down, place the clove one or two inches below the soil surface. The clove will need 5-6 months of warm growing to produce a bulb. Garlic is easily grown outdoors or indoors on a sunny porch.
Dried Beans also are their own seed and most, if not previously heated, treated or frozen, will sprout readily when planted. Best to put these outside where they have room to roam.
Just for fun give scrap gardening a try. You can grow a little food and save a little money. But most importantly will be the feeling of satisfaction that you have literally created food from scraps.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/free-articles/almost-free-food-348390.html
Monday
Environmental Industry – More than a Consumer Fad
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. This common phrase is practiced with a new fervor by an emerging group of extreme environmentalists across the country today. Known as “freegans,” this group of ecological advocates and capitalist dissenters lives on the scraps of modern society; screaming anti-consumerism by the very nature of their lifestyles. As a movement to support the sustainability of the planet and protest federal statutes, freegans forage for the necessities of life, often by dumpster diving or recycling society’s waste to generate functional products. While they do not have stipulated rules or an organized structure, freegan’s anti-waste principles are gaining momentum across the country as Americans begin to realize the imminent consequences of waste-driven lifestyles and careless industry.
Freegans may approach their cause with a bit of over-the-top enthusiasm by the account of an average observer, but their voice of environmental concern is echoed by businesses and industrial sectors throughout the country. Among many, the construction industry has seen exponential growth in the innovative manufacture and specification of “green” product solutions. Manufacturers are producing materials from post-consumer and post-industrial waste, engineering new ways to conserve water, re-routing power to the sun, and introducing new ways to reclaim products after their useful lives. Third-party organizations such as the United States Green Building Council have emerged to distinguish environmental product claims and manufacturers are evaluating not only their raw materials and end product, but the processes of their production facilities.
Founded on the same concern for environmental health as the fanatic freegan lifestyle, commercial construction is turning toward sustainable, recycled, and renewable solutions. In Lancaster, Pennsylvania, recycled rubber surfacing manufacturer ECORE International produces commercial and fitness flooring from old truck and car tires, saving over 80 million pounds of scrap tire rubber from landfills each year. Many other manufacturing companies have followed suite, establishing thriving businesses out of recycling old commercial or consumer products into new materials. As an industry that employs extensive resources and generates millions of square feet of product each year, construction’s potential environmental impact exceeds that of consumer movements or individual lifestyle decisions. Unfortunately, not all manufacturers have begun to embrace sustainable principles and the associated cost of “greening” production processes has lead many competitive companies to avoid it altogether. The purchasing power of buyers will become a vital role in the continued evolution of green construction and its lasting impact on the health of the natural environment.
While some may choose to impact the planet by foraging for food in dumpsters and boycotting industrial involvement, industry itself is making notable strides in the fight for environmental progress.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/environment-articles/environmental-industry-more-than-a-consumer-fad-2858192.html
Freegans may approach their cause with a bit of over-the-top enthusiasm by the account of an average observer, but their voice of environmental concern is echoed by businesses and industrial sectors throughout the country. Among many, the construction industry has seen exponential growth in the innovative manufacture and specification of “green” product solutions. Manufacturers are producing materials from post-consumer and post-industrial waste, engineering new ways to conserve water, re-routing power to the sun, and introducing new ways to reclaim products after their useful lives. Third-party organizations such as the United States Green Building Council have emerged to distinguish environmental product claims and manufacturers are evaluating not only their raw materials and end product, but the processes of their production facilities.
Founded on the same concern for environmental health as the fanatic freegan lifestyle, commercial construction is turning toward sustainable, recycled, and renewable solutions. In Lancaster, Pennsylvania, recycled rubber surfacing manufacturer ECORE International produces commercial and fitness flooring from old truck and car tires, saving over 80 million pounds of scrap tire rubber from landfills each year. Many other manufacturing companies have followed suite, establishing thriving businesses out of recycling old commercial or consumer products into new materials. As an industry that employs extensive resources and generates millions of square feet of product each year, construction’s potential environmental impact exceeds that of consumer movements or individual lifestyle decisions. Unfortunately, not all manufacturers have begun to embrace sustainable principles and the associated cost of “greening” production processes has lead many competitive companies to avoid it altogether. The purchasing power of buyers will become a vital role in the continued evolution of green construction and its lasting impact on the health of the natural environment.
While some may choose to impact the planet by foraging for food in dumpsters and boycotting industrial involvement, industry itself is making notable strides in the fight for environmental progress.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/environment-articles/environmental-industry-more-than-a-consumer-fad-2858192.html
Wednesday
How to Live Freegan and Die Old
Marko Manriquez is the founder of The Freegan Kitchen, a site that promotes cooking found food. He's been diving in dumpsters for food going on three years now.
As a result his lifestyle is both environmentally and socially responsible. I recently became aware of freeganism through a mutual friend. Then I got to interview Manriquez about how he's been off the agri-business grid since.
Kelly Abbott: When did you first become interested in the freegan lifestyle and what drew you to it?
Marko Manriquez: I've always considered myself an environmentalist (as well as a bit of cheapskate), so it was a natural fit for my lifestyle. My friends kept finding amazing things from the dumpster, including food. At first, I was apprehensive to eat any of it, taking only timid bitefuls. But, I was surprised at both how much perfectly good food was being thrown away (~14% by conservative estimates) and that no one really knew about it. And it also bothered me that most of our garbage was being literally entombed in landfills rather than composted or returned into the ecosystem. The United States is a culture of enormous consumer appetites (obviously)—we consume (and waste) so much but it never really seems to satisfy our desires. The impulse to buy our way out of anything is very strong, rarely questioned and conditioned into us perpetually from a very early age. I wanted to share this revelation with others. I created FK as a way to both satirize our consumer media bubble (how better than with a cooking show?) while at the same time empower others to alternative forms of sustainability—all the while leveraging the tools of the system to critique itself.
KA: Can you explain the art of dumpster diving? What advice might you give to beginners?
MM: It's fun and kind of a rush when you first get started and don't know what to expect—like a scavenger hunt. It's especially useful for art students or creative-minded individuals looking for raw materials to salvage into clever art projects since you find all sorts of odds and ends in the dumpster. You name it, chances are it's laying in a dumpster somewhere. College campuses and affluent neighborhoods can be goldmines for furniture, housewares, and electronics. Food is hit-or-miss in the supermarket dumpsters of these areas. Here's what I've found helpful:
Dumpster Diving Etiquette
Be quiet, discreet
Be considerate—don't leave a mess
If you find something of value that you don't need, place it aside for the next freegan
Bring a flashlight or headlamp
Organic produce is coded begining with a '9' in its PLU (Price Look-Up code), conventional food has a 4 digit PLU
A pocketknife is also helpful
Bring a bag or something to carry your loot
Gloves are nice but optional
Early morning or later in the evening is optimal
If a worker asks you to leave, don't argue, just move on to the next dumpster
If it smells/looks bad, it probably is
Thoroughly scrub your produce with a brush (and I like using baking soda too)
KA: As for food, do you ever get tired of what you find? Is there usually a variety of food? What do you do if the dumpster is empty?
MM: Not really. You can find pretty much anything you need to survive tossed by someone in the dumpster. This includes but isn't limited to: furniture, electronics, computers, monitors, vacuums, food, clothing, books, even unopened alcohol (my friends have been more lucky at this than I). Most of the furniture in my house came from the street. We like to look around college campuses (SDSU dorms especially), especially at the beginning or end of the quarter—it's a goldmine. I've personally found TVs, monitors, computers, vacuum cleaners, speakers, shelves, cookware, art, CDs, books—all in perfectly good shape and more than we can use. Most of it only needs a little repair and is soon good as new
.
KA: As for sanitary issues? How do you know you're not eating contaminated or spoiled foods? Do you have methods for securing food sanitation?
MM: It's the same whether you're inside the grocery store or out back in its dumpster—use your eyes and nose. You look for mold, rotting, and discoloration. If something smells bad you toss it. If a bag or can is bulging, you avoid it. But here's the thing: grocery stores are continually restocking and tossing out food that is technically expired (due to the expiration date) but is perfectly edible—sellable one day, labeled as garbage the next day. So, the dumpsters are continually being replenished and odds are good that you'll find plenty of bounty. Overall, by following a careful practice, I feel pretty good about the quality of food I gather and have never gotten sick or ill from it.
KA: I have to ask: Does being a freegan ever interfere with your social life or family dynamic?
MM: Never. In many ways, it probably enhances the dynamic. It's a great reason to go out dumpster-diving with a couple friends and divide and cook the bounty afterward.
As a result his lifestyle is both environmentally and socially responsible. I recently became aware of freeganism through a mutual friend. Then I got to interview Manriquez about how he's been off the agri-business grid since.
Kelly Abbott: When did you first become interested in the freegan lifestyle and what drew you to it?
Marko Manriquez: I've always considered myself an environmentalist (as well as a bit of cheapskate), so it was a natural fit for my lifestyle. My friends kept finding amazing things from the dumpster, including food. At first, I was apprehensive to eat any of it, taking only timid bitefuls. But, I was surprised at both how much perfectly good food was being thrown away (~14% by conservative estimates) and that no one really knew about it. And it also bothered me that most of our garbage was being literally entombed in landfills rather than composted or returned into the ecosystem. The United States is a culture of enormous consumer appetites (obviously)—we consume (and waste) so much but it never really seems to satisfy our desires. The impulse to buy our way out of anything is very strong, rarely questioned and conditioned into us perpetually from a very early age. I wanted to share this revelation with others. I created FK as a way to both satirize our consumer media bubble (how better than with a cooking show?) while at the same time empower others to alternative forms of sustainability—all the while leveraging the tools of the system to critique itself.
KA: Can you explain the art of dumpster diving? What advice might you give to beginners?
MM: It's fun and kind of a rush when you first get started and don't know what to expect—like a scavenger hunt. It's especially useful for art students or creative-minded individuals looking for raw materials to salvage into clever art projects since you find all sorts of odds and ends in the dumpster. You name it, chances are it's laying in a dumpster somewhere. College campuses and affluent neighborhoods can be goldmines for furniture, housewares, and electronics. Food is hit-or-miss in the supermarket dumpsters of these areas. Here's what I've found helpful:
Dumpster Diving Etiquette
Be quiet, discreet
Be considerate—don't leave a mess
If you find something of value that you don't need, place it aside for the next freegan
Bring a flashlight or headlamp
Organic produce is coded begining with a '9' in its PLU (Price Look-Up code), conventional food has a 4 digit PLU
A pocketknife is also helpful
Bring a bag or something to carry your loot
Gloves are nice but optional
Early morning or later in the evening is optimal
If a worker asks you to leave, don't argue, just move on to the next dumpster
If it smells/looks bad, it probably is
Thoroughly scrub your produce with a brush (and I like using baking soda too)
KA: As for food, do you ever get tired of what you find? Is there usually a variety of food? What do you do if the dumpster is empty?
MM: Not really. You can find pretty much anything you need to survive tossed by someone in the dumpster. This includes but isn't limited to: furniture, electronics, computers, monitors, vacuums, food, clothing, books, even unopened alcohol (my friends have been more lucky at this than I). Most of the furniture in my house came from the street. We like to look around college campuses (SDSU dorms especially), especially at the beginning or end of the quarter—it's a goldmine. I've personally found TVs, monitors, computers, vacuum cleaners, speakers, shelves, cookware, art, CDs, books—all in perfectly good shape and more than we can use. Most of it only needs a little repair and is soon good as new
.
KA: As for sanitary issues? How do you know you're not eating contaminated or spoiled foods? Do you have methods for securing food sanitation?
MM: It's the same whether you're inside the grocery store or out back in its dumpster—use your eyes and nose. You look for mold, rotting, and discoloration. If something smells bad you toss it. If a bag or can is bulging, you avoid it. But here's the thing: grocery stores are continually restocking and tossing out food that is technically expired (due to the expiration date) but is perfectly edible—sellable one day, labeled as garbage the next day. So, the dumpsters are continually being replenished and odds are good that you'll find plenty of bounty. Overall, by following a careful practice, I feel pretty good about the quality of food I gather and have never gotten sick or ill from it.
KA: I have to ask: Does being a freegan ever interfere with your social life or family dynamic?
MM: Never. In many ways, it probably enhances the dynamic. It's a great reason to go out dumpster-diving with a couple friends and divide and cook the bounty afterward.
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