The photographer Peter Menzel few years ago visited different countries of the world in order to photograph families of those countries with the food they consume regularly for a week. A book was published based on this work, “Hungry Planet”, where tastes, preferences and food culture of these countries are reflected, but in addition we can see the reality of our world, in which millions of people suffer from hunger and malnutrition, while in other countries obesity rates grow as epidemic and food are wasted in large amounts.
The expense that a family does in your shopping basket is very different between countries reflecting Menzel. In some, like Chad, they survive as little more than a dollar a week, while in others, we eat with excess of calories and we are wasting big amounts of food. With our habits, we contribute to wasting much of the food we buy and consume in our homes.
I used the pictures of Menzel in this occasion to close this post the serie about food waste in particular, to speaking about food waste in households.
The 42% of food are thrown out in household according to UE, and Spain is the seventh country that more food waste to 7,7 million tons. In 2013 a study was published by Hispacoop and supported by the National Institute of Consumption in which it was noted that in Spain the average waste per household is 1,3 kg/week. The group of breads, cereals, pastries and others foods (19,3%), fruits and vegetables (16,9%), milk yogurts, cheeses and other dairy products (13,3%) and pasta are the most waste food, among all these groups account for 62.6% of wasted food in households.
Leftovers, main reason Leftovers meals are the main reason why food is thrown away in the household (86.5%), not to calculate the portions not plan well or menu beforehand.
We have to recover recipes and seek to take advantage of these leftovers, our recipe book is full of dishes that are born like recipes of leftovers: “croquetas”, “ropa vieja”, the delicious “torrijas”, etc. All of them have appeared of wit of chefs, cooks and especially housewives who have sought the way to harness remains of bread, meat, vegetables and give them a second chance like delicious dishes.
The deterioration of food by poor storage or excess in storage has been reflected as the next reason to reject food in Spanish households. We tend to save the leftovers of the meal, with the intention to use it for a later meal, but then we do not plan well, or we let spoil this leftovers, to finally end up in the rubbish bin.
Planning, kitchen and reused To reduce this waste in our homes we should start by good planning. We have to think the weekly menu, and the food we need for this menu, and what we are going to do with leftovers. Knowing the weekly menu will help us to know previously what quantities and ingredients we need to do it.
In this way we will not buy too much and thus we will avoid some of these foods end up damaged, or buy food we already have in the pantry. When we make the purchase it must look at the expiration date or preferred consumption of food, ensuring that falls within our planning.
At the time of cooking we should adjust the amounts of ingredients to the number of people, using kitchen utensils to help us calculate the portions always in the same way. It can be calculated for cooking more quantity if you have a clear intention, and freeze the leftovers for a later meal planned, but this must be taken into account.
‘Did you know that cocoa increases mental activity? We are going to discover and prove scientifically the incredible power of what we have in the pantry’.
With these words, the Spanish cooker Alberto Chicote started ‘Superfoods’, his special TV program, on March28. When it started, I said to myself: I won’t miss it! I have to admit that I had some uncomfortable moments, and I thought: Oh my god! They are getting on top!
According to the ratings, the program was a success. And, on the one hand, I am glad because it shows the Spanish interest in eating in a healthy way (beyond football or ‘big brother’). Secondly, I am glad because it evidences the huge potential of television to increase the nutrition knowledge.
We must learn how to communicate science in an educational and funny way (as Chicote), but always under the strict sight of scientific evidences. After living a few crazy years proclaiming the miraculous effects of food, the publication of Regulation (EC) 1924/2006, related to nutrition declarations and health properties of food, the scene has changed radically, prohibiting attribute to any food a beneficial effect without scientific basis and without being expressly authorized.
In this case, I dedicate today’s post to check briefly the science behind the effects that the program attributed to the 10 ‘Superfoods’. Chicote ensured that:
‘The extra virgin olive oil strengthens bones and eliminates fats’. ‘Cocoa strengthens teeth and streamlines the mind’. ‘Blue fish is good against stresses’. ‘Coffee prevents fatigue driving’. ‘Oranges slow aging’. ‘Pasta increases athletic performance’. ‘The tomato prevents sunburn’. ‘Broccoli protects your eyesight of the sun’. ‘Legumes reduce cholesterol’.
On the one hand, the following table lists the so-called ‘superfoods’ and their benefits reported on television. And on the other hand, it includes the active ingredients that provide these foods, the beneficial effects scientifically accepted by the EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) and it today is authorized to inform European consumers about the benefits.
Indeed, there is scientific evidence that selected foods have certain beneficial effects. However, the word ‘Superfood’ is not the right word, because it could give the idea that they are ‘miraculous’, and then we start doing strange things such as ‘broccoli diet’ or eating 2kg of oranges every day in order to get eternal youth.
Looking at the table, we can conclude that:
It is very curious that this program shows some effects of these foods which do not count with the scientific evidences, instead of the recognized healthy effects.
In the case of pulses, because of their phystosterols contents, we could admit that ‘they help to maintain normal cholesterol levels’, but not ‘reduce cholesterol’.
Scientifically, effects on our concentration related to the caffeine consume are demonstrated. However, Europe is not authorized to publicize these effects to avoid excessive consumption of coffee or caffeinated beverages. For more information of caffeine, you can check the following EFSA’s poster.
On 26 September it was celebrated in Madrid the “4th Meeting point against food waste” organized by AECOC, where the waste problem was analyzed from different perspectives and pooling actual experiences of prevention and reduction.
Social enterprises as “Espigoladors”, which employs people at risk of social exclusion, transferred their experience in preventing waste through the use of fruits and vegetables discarded in the field (by size, defects, appearance) for the production and sale of jams and creams, contributing in a sustainable way to reducing waste, creating jobs and getting an economic benefit.
Innovation in packaging it has also been discussed and how can reduce the waste, or in the case presented by Pepsico, how through a program of valorization of its by-products is achieved zero waste in one of its production plants snacks.
Several posts have been dedicated about food waste in this blog, trying to find solutions for the waste reduction and its valorization. We have discussed the need for prevention as a tool to reduce waste throughout the food chain, but besides preventing, what can it be done to decrease the amount of waste generated by the food industry?
The food industry is one of the main generators of waste organic nature in our country, mainly composed of those parts of the raw materials are not useful in the development process and can represent up to 85% by weight of the raw material received.
Few years ago these organic wastes were leaded to animal feed industry or agronomic valorization. But in recent decades, in the face of need for food industry to value their by-products, the R & D and the work of the research teams, are aimed at finding innovative and tangible solutions with economic return and high value-added .
Companies are slowly changing their outlook towards the environment, gradually transforming its working methods towards more sustainable manufacturing processes, but while optimizing their resources, reduce waste and obtain an economic benefit.
Trends in R & D in terms of the valorization of by-products go in parallel to trends in the food industry in the manufacture of new foods. Thus, many food by-products are source for obtaining compounds with high added value as antioxidants, fiber, essential fatty acids, antimicrobials, minerals, etc., which can later be included in production processes to obtaining new foods of high added value and in many cases with functional properties.
The food industry is not the only one who can benefit from using these products. Currently, there are cosmetics or pharmaceuticals in the market incorporating different compounds such as antioxidants or polyphenols, which have been obtained from by-products valorization.
The CARTIF experience in this research field has been wide, and it has developed several projects where the objective has been to obtain compounds with high added value from by-products of the food industry. The DIANA project led by several companies and accompanied by research centers, where the goal was to obtain from different products like coffee, grape marc, algae, etc., compounds with high added value for their incorporation into different food matrices and provide various improvements, thanks to these compounds.
The LACTISHOE project works in a very different meaning, because from whey as a by-product of the cheese industry and through and hybrid membrane-fermentation reactor, that it will produce lactic acid. Then, it will perform the lactic acid microencapsulation, and then it will be incorporated in the templates and in the lining of shoes, giving them beneficial properties for the foot.
Waste generation by food industries is an inherent consequence of their activity, but the search for sustainable and environmentally friendly alternatives is a necessity that faces all companies, not forgetting that both have an economic benefit through the valorization of their by-products.
Given that the food and beverage industry in Spain comprises about 22% of industrial GDP and is formed by 30.000 companies (of which 96% are SMEs), it is not strange that our country avails one of the most important exhibitions in Europe: Alimentaria.
This biennial meeting is undoubtedly a professional showcase and a benchmark event in the food sector. With nearly 4.000 exhibitors from 63 different countries, it allows to know the news, and current and future trends in food, in addition to doing business.
In ALIMENTARIA 2016, held last week, it highlights the strong internationalization of companies and products as a vector of change (or overcoming of the famous ‘crisis’) and an increase in the market of organic products and food products elaborated through sustainable processes.
Some of the main areas in ALIMENTARIA 2016 are Intercarn, Interlact, Intervin, Multifoods o Restaurama. In them, we have seen many new products, always from our point of view as researchers in food field.
We have found pearls of olive oil, almond oil, vinegar and juice.
Chorizo, Catalan sausage and salami for vegetarians; without meat, but with egg white as a protein source.
Going on with meat, we have found shoulder blade or rack of young lamb semielaborated, which is finished in the oven inside a container without staining and leaving the meat in its point and with crispy crust. Easier and cleaner, ¡impossible!
Omelets stuffed with black pudding, Catalan sausage or goat cheese.
Salt of all flavors and colors.
About drinks, in addition to the multitude of wineries with delicious wines and precious labels and bottles, we have found several drinks based on extracts. Drinks made from beans and strawberries, vegetable drinks, rice drinks with coconut or almonds, craft beer with aloe…
Pizza flour charcoal. That is; black pizza bases in order to stand out the rest of foods. And with the purifying benefits of charcoal, of course.
Wide variety of healthier snacks based on peas, beans, broccoli, mango, banana, pineapple or apple textured. And, as a novelty, snacks based on beef jerky with different flavors (spices, chili, curry).
Sauces and chutneys: carob with dates, apple or pineapple mustard, honey with ginger or cinnamon, cocoa butter or jam with wine, oil or vinegar…
Personally, I want to highlight a delicious mango gazpacho.
And finally, one of the foods with hardest presence was quinoa. Quinoa flour, cereals, biscuits, bars, quinoa ready to eat with vegetables, and a long etcetera.
Today’s consumer looks for pleasure in food, but, without doubt, the trend that marks the development of new products is the health concern. This factor includes feeling good, getting fit, improving health and not growing old.
CARTIF collaborates with several food companies in this field, developing new products, improving existing ones, changing ingredients, valorazing subproducts, in order to suit a demanding and competitive market which is constantly in movement.
There is a restaurant in Japan where if its clients left one only rice grain in the plate, should pay a fine. Specialized in shellfish, the “Hachikyo Restaurant” offers a dish that consist of salmon roes over a white rice bed. The restaurant informs the customers who order this dish: “Working conditions of fisherman are hard and dangerous. To express our gratitude to the food that they provide, it is forbidden to leave one only rice grain in the plate. The costumers who don’t finish their tsukko meshi should give a donation.
These punitive measurements are been applied by some restaurants in different countries around the world to make people aware of the food waste in the hospitality sector, where in the case of Spain are thrown 63.000 tons of food per year, a wastage that costs 255 M€.
On average 21% of food waste arises from spoilage; 45% from food preparation and 34% from consumer plates (WRAP. 2013. “Overview of Waste in the UK Hospitality and Food Service Sector”).
If a restaurant wants to reduce their quantity of food waste, it have to identify what are the critical points where is throwing the food and them to apply solutions. Mismanagement purchasing, incorrect storage and conservation of products can become in waste of product, economic and resources (personal cost that prepare food that later rather will throw it, waste of energy during cooking, conservation, etc).
A point of improvement to reduce waste food can be the practices in food preparation at kitchen. Peel, chop, clean, cut are techniques that if it doesn’t do efficiently or it don`t use the correct utensils the quantity of product that is thrown can be very important.
The leftovers are the sign more obvious about the food waste. Portions too big or garnishes not consumed, should be an indication for take the initiative by the restaurant and provide some changes to the customers. These changes can be very attractive to clients concerned with the problem of food waste. Some tips to reduce waste:
• Offer in the menu different sizes of portions (whole, half portion, mini-portions, portions for kids, etc). • Inform to the customers about the size of portion before they order their meal. • Include in the menu some pictures of the dishes, in this way the customers can make an idea about the size of portions. • Garnishes are very important in the quantity of waste, the restaurant have to analyze which are thrown it by the customers to suggest some changes. It possible that the restaurant is offering the same garnish for different plates and so that the customer will leave it. In other cases, garnishes very “thoroughgoing” are offered where the customer don’t know if they are part of the menu or they are put like ornament. Offer the garnish separate to the customer can serve himself the quantity that he wants is a good option for reduce this kind of food waste. • Many times the client doesn’t want dessert because he is aware that is too big for finish it, a solution could be to offer “minidessert” or “miniportions”. • Bread is one the food more wasted is restaurants. In many occasions bread is served as an individual portion, when the consumption of bread is different between customers or it is dependent on the kind of meal. Bread can be served in a little hamper in small portions to the clients to eat in based on their appetite.
Food waste due to client is much higher in buffet restaurants, because the customers can serve all the food that they want. This promotes the wastage in an important way. In this kind of restaurants is possible carry out some initiatives to reduce the waste, like:
– Use plates and utensilsmore little in the moment of serving. The quantity that the client can serve it is not limited, but the big plates promote that the client pick a lot of food that it will end up being thrown in the bin. – Don’t use trays which promote that the clients serve themselves a large quantity of food. – Posters with material informative about food waste are found in some restaurants to make aware of the problem of food waste. In these posters it is recommended serving only the food that it is going to be consumed.
“Doggy bag” is offered in some restaurants in others countries, this kind of lunch box is used to carry the leftovers by the customers when they don’t finish their menu, and contribute to reduce the waste and to become aware of the problem. This habit it is not very common in Spain, because the embarrassment of the customers to request the leftovers, but this trend is changing thanks to customers worried about food waste and there are more and more restaurants that offer their own “doggy bag”.
In 2012 the campaign “No lo tiro” was launch by “San Miguel” brewing company in collaboration with restaurants of Madrid and Barcelona. This campaign encouraged to clients to request the leftovers of the menu.
Even there are restaurants where their menu is elaborated only with leftovers, using surplus goods from the food industry, these are foodstuffs which shops cannot sell for various reasons due to the demands of consumer culture – such as those discarded for purely aesthetic reasons of standard shapes, or surplus seasonal produce.
The hospitality sector has a lot of improvement opportunities in this sense, and restaurants managers and customers it can achieve in an important way the reducing of food waste.
Entomophagy. This is the name we use to call insect consumption by humans. It is estimated that more than 2.000 million people worldwide include insects in their daily diet, but until now, those palates are not European. Among the most consumed insects are beetles, caterpillars, bees, wasps and ants. I do not want to be bearer of bad news but, a few months ago with the publication of Regulation (UE) 2015/2283, legislative barriers, which do not allow this in Europe, have disappeared, so like in “Poltergeist”… they are already here!
Until now, a novel food has been all kind of food or ingredient that had not been used to human consumption in the EU before 15 May 1997. In the context of Regulation 258/1997, it has been authorized food with fungi or algae (microalgae oils rich in DHA), foods produced with new technologies (fruit juices under high pressure), typical food consumed outside EU (chia seeds), etc. The procedures for authorization of a new food were a real demonstration of human perseverance and tenacity, because, being optimistic, we would be talking about processes of at least three or four years. Despite of this fact, from 1997 to 2015 there have been about 180 requests for authorization in Europe, and now approximately 90 new ingredients have been allowed.
Of course, it is not curious that the category of insect was not included in a regulation published almost 20 years ago as novel food. In fact, as these ingredients were not covered by the legislation, it seemed that they did not exist, as today in Linkedin: if you are not, do not exist. This situation is the reflection of a reality that we live daily: the gap between technological progress and legal aspects causes conflict situations that end up limiting research and development of new foods. With the new regulation, it is expected that companies can commercialize more easily innovative food market in the EU, while maintaining a high level of food safety. To this end, it has simplified the process for authorization of a new food and provisions have been introduced on the confidentiality of the information and data protection after approval.
According to the FAO, there are a lot of advantages in the insect consumption by humans, like we can see in the next board:
But I can’t finish yet. Please, someone has to tell FAO that insects could be good for us but they give us a horrible revulsion. Probably, I am not the only one who almost has a heart attack when I feel an insect over me, so imagine what would happen if I have one of this in my dish. I am aware of the display to create this culture of entomophagy in the following years. I imagine the best chefs creating recipes and menus to delight us with new flavors of insects, or the food industry launching tasty and nutritious snacks for kids’ lunch with these little animals, or your mother’s answer (chef channel follower) when your father asks her… Mary, what’s for dinner?…
