#coronavirus #COVID19 #FlattenTheCurve #FoodWaste #food
In the early day of the conornavirus pandemic, many of us were outraged at farmers throwing away crops, milk and other food just as many lost jobs and would eventually need help feeding their families.
But, as restaurants closed and distribution was disrupted, farmers could neither sell nor store their crops.
In normal times, however, most food waste is generated from households. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that consumers might throw away 30 to 40 percent of the food they buy. So says an article by Rachael Jackson for the Washington Post. It was also published Sept. 2, 2020, in The Atlanta Journal Constitution.
But, as the article says, the pandemic is causing us to change our cooking habits.
“Perhaps, hesitant to risk virus exposure at the store, you have improvised more meals from whatever the fridge offered,” Jackson writes. “Or, (you) started doing inventories of your pantry and shopping with targeted lists. And, amid tightening finances, you may have eaten something past its ‘best by date, or frozen vegetables before they turned to mush,” she continues.
If enough of those habits stay with you, we may cut into the amount of food we waste, the article says.
So, the pandemic has us doing things differently. In addition to wasting less food, we are saving more money. Those two behaviors blend together well.
Therefore, we would like those behaviors to continue, wouldn’t we?
Staying at home has given us time to think. Among the thoughts undoubtedly is how best to improve our lives even when the pandemic goes away – which probably won’t be anytime soon.
Staying home gives us time to take stock of what was good about our lives, and what was not so good. Even if we are able to go back to the old way, do we really want to?
Was the job that perhaps the pandemic took away worth getting back? If so, will it come back? If not, what to do next?
Fortunately, there are many programs out there that enable a person to earn an income without the benefit, or headaches, of a W-2 job. And, technology allows many of these programs to be done from home, should another pandemic – or other disaster – return.
Anyone, regardless of education, background or experience can do these things. You just have to be coachable, and, more importantly, open to checking them out in the first place.
If you are, and want to learn about one of the best such programs, message me.
Meanwhile, as you continue to contemplate your life, don’t just look at the bad things the pandemic has wrought. Look at the good things you have done to live with, and through, it.
A successful vaccine may be the only solution to this crisis. Hopefully, one will be found as soon as it is scientifically possible. Let’s hope we don’t offer a vaccine before it is thoroughly tested.
The lessons from Jackson’s article are many. Buy only what you will eat within the time it is edible. Congruently, eat what you buy within that time.
If you have to throw food away, think before you throw. Think of your friends who may have lost their jobs and are struggling to eat. Think of how else you might use that food.
It may mean more trips to the store. If the pandemic is still on, don’t forget to mask up.
Often, things happen for a reason, though we may not know the reason immediately. The pandemic has taught us some better habits. Let us continue them.
Peter