It is easy not to waste food if you live on the countryside. Take our Sapanca farmhouse. If something is not eaten it will be put on the table next day or re-purposed. If an ingredient has been around for a while my mother-in-law would turn it into a tasty lunch. If a cooked dish has been in the fridge for too long it goes into the dog food and if something has perished - it will be composted.
In a city it is harder to be so thrifty. The households are smaller so less enthusiastic eaters for the food leftovers and who wants to eat the same meal again if you can go out or order in; dogs eat premium packaged food and composting may be a dream. Yesterday after I cleaned the fridge and freezer at my kitchen in Istanbul I felt like a sinner: despite all of my efforts and consciousness I had to throw away a few things. Yet fortunately I managed to re- purpose a few of them too, which made me feel a bit better. We, urban dwellers, have a lot to learn from the people living closer to their land and food. So here are five lessons from our countryside food waste management that can surely be applied at a small urban household.
