September 2016 – The Waste Management & Recycling Blog

TRJFP: The UK’s first food waste supermarket

The Real Junk Food Project (TRJFP) is a global network which up until this week consisted of over 120 pay as you feel cafes. These fantastic eateries divert food destined for waste and instead use it to create delicious and healthy meals, which customers can pay for in a variety of ways. This week, however, TRJFP set up its first food waste supermarket in Pudsey, Leeds, which is also the first of its kind in the UK.

The project’s founder is Adam Smith, and we have been lucky enough to steal a few minutes of his time to find out a bit more about TRJFP, the Pudsey supermarket, and his thoughts on the problem of food waste.

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Six great uses for stale bread

24 million slices of bread are thrown out by households in Britain every day, and nearly one in five UK households admit to binning an entire loaf of bread before even opening it or slicing it, according to research conducted last year on behalf of the charity Love Food Hate Waste. Bread is one of our nation’s favourite foods, with almost half of adults eating it daily. However, it seems we are not eating anywhere near as much bread as we are buying, which is a food waste issue that needs to be addressed.

So, why do we throw our bread out? It has usually gone stale or mouldy. Today we are focusing on stale bread, and here are six suggestions of how you can use it up instead of throwing it in the bin.

1. Toast it

Photo: bigacis — Photo copyright: bigacis

This is a simple solution, but one that many people don’t consider. Toast your stale bread and you’d never know it was stale in the first place. Add lashings of butter and your favourite toppings.

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Dog mess: the nation’s most hated & dangerous litter

The Big Scoop campaign has kicked off this week; organised by Dog’s Trust and Keep Britain Tidy, this campaign aims to highlight how easy it is to scoop your dog’s poop, and appeals to dog owners to do just that. The Big Scoop will support local councils, and educate dog owners. A survey conducted recently in Cardiff showed that the general public dislike dog mess more than general litter or people smoking in public, making dog poo the nation’s biggest bugbear.

The UK is home to over 8 million canines, who produce over 1000 tonnes of waste between them every day – that weighs as much as 200 double-decker buses! Of course, this wouldn’t be a problem if all of the mess was scooped up, but this is sadly far from the truth.

Alex Jackson, who is Head of Campaigns at Dogs Trust, says:

“Dog poo is still one of the biggest complaints received by local councils every year, with 81,000 complaints received from members of the public last year alone, so it’s important that everyone is aware of how simple disposing of dog mess can be.”

Owners who don’t scoop their dog’s poop are breaking the law, and face an £80 fine if caught. The problem is ‘if caught’; many irresponsible dog owners who don’t scoop, commit the act when nobody is about, or by cover of darkness, knowing they will get away with it.

But why do we dislike dog poo so much? And why should we clear it up straight away from our streets, paths, and parks? We explore the reasons below.

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Zero Waste Week competition 2016

This competition is now closed. The winner was Karen Parker of Stevenage.

September means Zero Waste Week, and this year’s theme is ‘Use it up!’ – with a focus on food waste, and how to reduce it. The week runs from 5^th-9^th September this year, and in celebration of this important campaign, we are running a Zero Waste competition throughout the month of September. Recycle Week and Waste Less Live More Week are also this month, so there’s lots to celebrate!

Win a Zero Waste lunch kit!

We have a wonderful zero waste lunch kit to give away. This kit includes a stainless steel two-tier lunchbox (which contains a small additional container), a glass water bottle, and a sustainable bamboo spork. This brilliant prize is worth £50.00, and could be yours if you enter our fun competition.

This zero waste lunch kit would be great for use at home, work, when travelling, for late summer picnics… there are so many possibilities!

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