Waste Not, Want Not cookbook: a guide for saving food and dollars

It’s pretty rare to see a cookbook about food wastage. However, Cindy Chavich’s new cookbook Waste Not, Want Not presents some pretty astounding facts at the way we discard edibles.

The big shocker is that in North America 40 per cent of food produced never reaches a table. And it’s not just that slimy green chunk of ham at the back of the fridge or the bagged tomatoes that have gone to mush.

In the 280-page cookbook, the Victoria-based cookbook writer writes that tons of produce never reaches the large multinational supermarkets. It is graded as cosmetically imperfect – odd sizes or the wrong size.

In other areas of the food system, she reports that that millions of fish are discarded because they are considered “bycatch.” This is a term for certain species scooped up in commercial nets that are illegal to sell. Chavich borrows conservation group Oceana estimates pegged at 63 billion pounds (23 billion kg). Those are jaw-dropping figures.

And then there’s the “best-before” syndrome where 90 percent of consumers toss packaged foods prior to expiry dates. Ironically, most foods do not turn to nuclear waste after the expiration date, and Chavich includes a reference guide to stem spoilage.

Her goal seems to be multi-pronged – encouraging sustainability and saving food as well as reducing the grocery bill and saving the planet. She challenges the consumer to reduce their consumption by shopping smarter and introduces simple strategies on buying and storing foods.

There are three major recipe sections: the “Fruits & Vegetables” pages list 27 kinds of produce in alphabetical order from apples to zucchini. Every recipe not only includes tips for cooking, but also how to reuse leftovers.

The middle segment called “Staples” features 11 foods from bacon, bread, canned fish and cheese to corn tortillas, eggs, nuts and peanut butter. And the third portion is called “The Weekly Feast.” In this one, Chavich discusses six proteins running the gamut from salmon, chicken and turkey to pork, lamb and beef.

We are entering an era where wasting food is becoming unfashionable. Nose-to-tail dining is the popular buzzword in the culinary industry. Chavich’s Waste Not, Want Not is a wonderful guide to laying the foundations for a more efficient kitchen and a satisfying start to developing a sustainable planet.

Chavich is a featured author giving a talk at LitFest Edmonton’s Nonfiction Festival on Saturday, Oct. 17. For more information visit litfestalberta.com.