Waste

Recently, I was invited to a friend’s house for supper – and had a meal like I’ve never had before!

Ben, the host, had also invited his fiancée Marina, and another work colleague called Alistair. We were all, including Marina, a little surprised by the invitation. It’s not that Ben is unsociable, or a bad cook, but he’s very frugal. No, not mean, it’s just that he never spends more than he has to. He’s never been wasteful or bought anything compulsively. In his opinion, his money has been hard earned and so should be spent wisely.

I remember one month we got a bonus- we were paid more money than normal. I went out and bought a microwave oven. Alistair decided to splash out on a new coat. And Ben? Nothing. Ben says he is against consumerism. Why buy something he already has, or doesn’t really need? Better to keep the money for something important rather than spend it carelessly.

So how come he was inviting us round for a meal? Had he changed? He greeted us at the door with a wide smile, and as we entered the house the delicious aromas of cooking came wafting from the kitchen. “We thought we might be getting baked beans,” said Alistair, “but you’ve really cooked us something!”

Ben ushered us into his dining room where a laid table was waiting for us. He was still smiling in a strange way. “Nothing but the best for my friends!” said Ben. We all sat down and looked nervously at each other – what was he up to? “I hope,” said Marina, “that he turns out to be a good cook!” Ben returned with a tray and four bowls of steaming soup. We sniffed – it smelled OK! We took a small spoonful – it tasted OK! It wasn’t quite clear what kind of soup it was, so we asked. “It’s a mixture of carrots, potatoes and tomatoes,” replied Ben. “And some wild mint from the garden.” We finished the soup and Ben took four empty bowls back to the kitchen. Not bad.

The next course was also a little strange in that we didn’t quite know what it was again. There wasn’t any meat or fish we could see. “It’s just another mixture of things,” answered Ben patiently. “This time I‘ve fried together some peppers, mushrooms, courgettes and lots of onions.” As we ate we chatted about work, other friends and what film we’d like to see later that evening. Eventually, the subject turned back to what we were eating. “Was there a recipe for this,” asked Marina, “or did you make it up?” Ben put his fork down. “What I cooked depended on what I could find.” Marina was surprised. “But you can find anything in British supermarkets these days.” “But there’s less choice in what you can find outside supermarkets.” He replied.

We all stared at him in amazement. Seeing that we had all finished the food Ben decided that it was time to tell the truth. He had recently read that supermarkets throw away 5 per cent of their food because they only want to sell fresh food. So Ben decided to see if this was true or not. He went to look inside his local supermarket bins. There he found packet food that was slightly out of date, bags full of sandwiches and loaves of bread. “And many other things too.” said Ben. We were all shocked. “You mean, all this food you found in the street?” I asked. Yes, that was the case. Ben said he can afford not to eat free food so he wouldn’t do this regularly. He explained saying “there are many homeless people and poor people who need the food more than I do. But the amount of food thrown away is enough to feed millions of people, so I thought I’d give it a try.” So Ben had successfully provided a decent meal for his friends, and made us aware of the how much food is wasted every day.