Food for thought — don’t waste

Priya S Tandon

Food is a basic necessity of life. Isn’t it sad that many people in the world don’t get even two square meals a day, whereas there are others who waste aplenty?

Gandhiji remarked that there is enough on Earth for everybody’s need, but not for everybody’s greed. About 815 million people (10 per cent of the world population) are undernourished. Conversely, about 600 million people are obese and 1.3 billion overweight.

What a contrast! Dire need vs rampant greed! What an imbalance!

I have been witness to mushrooming eateries in Chandigarh over the past few years. I guess being able to afford eating out is a sign of affluence; but is ‘wasting food’ a sign of affluence too? Or is it a sign of apathy? 

I learnt of some Indians who ordered too much food while eating at a restaurant in Germany. After they had finished, they were rebuked by a lady on the next table for wasting a lot of food. Consequently, they had to pay a fine for ordering too much!

This sets me thinking. Such is the scene at restaurants in the metros where affluents dine out. The attitude perhaps is that if I can afford it; I ordered it. If I have paid for it, I can decide whether to waste it or eat it. It is my money and it is entirely my thing!

But Germans think differently. The lady complainant stated that their money could be their money but the resources (in this case, the food) belonged to the society and they had no business wasting it. Hence the fine!

Think of food wasted at weddings and social events. People fill their plates avariciously and then just dump it. How insensitive!

A large quantity of foodgrains rots due to lack of appropriate storage facilities in our country.

My son tells me of a signboard in his college canteen, which reads, “xxx kg of food was wasted here last week. This could have been enough to feed xxx number of people”. 

When I asked my son if students thought about it, let alone practise it, he just shook his head. Why? Is our conscience dead? 

We are a race that believes in ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ (The world is one family). So why are we so indifferent to our brethren; the starving millions? To me, this is fratricidal.

The ancients worshipped food as God, “Annam Brahma”. 

I remember my parents being so vigilant of foodstuff fallen on the floor. Even if a biscuit crumb would fall, they would pick it up and put it outside for birds. As kids, we had to serve ourselves vigilantly and then polish off everything down to the last speck. Wastage was not permitted. The habit remains… and I have striven to pass it on to my children.

If each one of us takes a step to curb wastage of food, surely we can make a difference. If we waste not, we shall surely want not.