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Unnecessary Food Waste: That’s How Much Food Ends Up in The Trash Every Year

Food waste is a global problem. Far too often food ends up in the trash. A study shows that people who buy healthy food often throw away more. This wastes a lot of resources – and harms the environment.

Study shows: Fruit and vegetables in particular end up in the trash

The study examined the relationship between diet quality, consumer food waste and various sustainability measures. A look at the results shows that between 2007 and 2014 an average of 422 grams of food per person was thrown away every day.

Important resources are used to grow fruit and vegetables: in particular, irrigation water and pesticides are required more than for other foods. These resources are also wasted by throwing away fruit and vegetables – important resources that could have been used to grow other foods.

Wasted resources – simple household countermeasures

Accordingly, consumers who strive for high-quality nutrition are faced with the challenge of buying the right amount. Increased consumption of fruits and vegetables means buying more – which in turn increases the risk that some of it will go uneaten and end up in the trash instead. According to the researchers from the USA, this could be particularly difficult for consumers with little time and money and for families with children.

However, there are some approaches to counteract this. For example, you can enter exactly when which meal is prepared on a plan. This way you can plan better. In addition, consumers can find out how to store fruit and vegetables correctly so that the food does not become inedible. Another option is to freeze the food in between.

Impact: Waste also harms the environment

The “Federal Environment Agency” also warns against the careless disposal of food in the garbage: The authority emphasizes above all the drastic consequences this has for the environment: “More than 38 million tons of greenhouse gases are produced every year, a good 43,000 square kilometers of agricultural land are used, as well as 216 million cubic meters of water are consumed”, reports the “Federal Environment Agency”.

Conclusion: A healthier diet often goes hand in hand with increased food waste. Fruit and vegetables in particular often end up in the garbage. This not only wastes resources, but also harms the environment. However, with a few simple tips and a greater appreciation for food, this can be countered a little in the household.

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Food

Tapioca Flour: These Local Produce Make it Unnecessary

Tapioca flour, tapioca pearls or tapioca starch: What is the use of the cassava root powder and are there regional alternatives to the binding agent from South America?

What is tapioca flour?

Tapioca is a by-product of making cassava flour. It is very fine and has a consistency like wheat flour or powdered sugar. It is pure starch and is also called tapioca flour, tapioca flakes or tapioca starch. The cassava plant originally comes from South America, especially from Brazil. It now grows in all areas with a tropical or subtropical climate.

Use of tapioca flour

Many Asian recipes, especially desserts, include tapioca pearls. If you soak them, they make, for example, a pudding similar to rice pudding or bubble tea.

In Brazil you can find tapioca flour in the form of crêpes on the daily menu. These are usually served as breakfast – from savory to sweet. The advantage of tapioca flour is that it does not require any fat for frying. The substance reacts with heat and automatically turns into a kind of pancake.

Tapioca flour is gluten-free and tasteless. So it’s no wonder that you find it mostly in gluten-free recipes.

It is also popular as a binding agent for sauces, soups and desserts. Tapioca is also used as a binding agent in the manufacture of tablets and gummy bears.

Regional alternatives to tapioca flour

If you pay attention to your ecological footprint, you should not use the cassava root and its flour, because: the long transport to Germany already makes tapioca flour a climate sinner. However, the cassava plant withstands periods of drought well, which keeps its water consumption within limits.

However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t alternatives to tapioca flour. Because even before the Brazilian root was widespread in our latitudes, grandmas and co. used corn starch or potato starch to thicken their sauces. These are good regional alternatives to tapioca and are also gluten-free.

You can use corn or potato starch to thicken sauces just like tapioca starch. You can also transfer the quantities 1:1. You shouldn’t notice any difference in taste, since both tapioca flour and corn and potato starch are tasteless.

However, Brazilian crêpes cannot easily be made from regional alternatives. This is because corn or potato starch does not melt in the same way that tapioca flour does.

If you do have to use tapioca flour, then make sure it is organic. Organic cultivation largely avoids the use of pesticides. You can get tapioca flour in organic quality in the organic market or in the health food store. Most Asian stores do not carry organic products.

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health

Dietary Supplements – Useful, Unnecessary or Even Questionable?

The number of dietary supplements available in the drugstore is almost unmanageable – but what exactly is a dietary supplement supposed to do? And can she even do that?

When you look at the shelves of a drugstore or at the advertising of the manufacturers of dietary supplements, you might think that we are all completely undersupplied. According to a survey by consumer advice centers, every third person questioned actually takes food supplements: a little vitamin C for a cold, magnesium for the muscles after exercise, cranberry pills for bladder infections…

It is particularly common for young adults under the age of 29 to use dietary supplements. And around half of those surveyed believe in the health-promoting effects. But does this belief have any basis at all, do dietary supplements really make sense?

What are dietary supplements?

Dietary supplements (NEM) are mostly artificial (food) products that are intended to supplement normal nutrition and that can be bought as tablets, capsules, drops or powders. They contain concentrated nutrients or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect. These can be vitamins, minerals, trace elements, amino acids, roughage, but also plants or herbal extracts – such as cranberry or aronia extract.

Dietary supplement products are legally classified as “food”, but manufacturers must label them as “nutritional supplements”. You must also provide a recommended daily dose and provide the product with a warning not to exceed this amount.

While dietary supplements used to be advertised mainly on coffee trips, they can now be bought almost everywhere: in supermarkets, drugstores, pharmacies or on the Internet, whether they make sense or not.

Subtle advertising promises for dietary supplements

Since the so-called Health Claims Ordinance (BMEL), manufacturers of dietary supplements are not allowed to simply advertise with health-related claims. With the exception of herbal ingredients, the advertising promises must first be submitted to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and scientifically examined.

So far, about 250 such statements for food supplements have been classified as scientifically verifiable. The majority are statements about vitamins and minerals: For example, manufacturers who add a certain amount are allowed to advertise that vitamin C contributes to the normal functioning of the immune system or that calcium is necessary for the maintenance of normal bones (see consumer advice center).

However, you may not advertise that you want to eliminate, alleviate or prevent diseases. Only statements like “reduces the risk of…” are allowed. And statements for which no evidence could be provided are forbidden.

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