Meat Free May Fail!

I'm halfway through this month's "Eco Challenge" - Meat Free May - and I've failed already!

Well, I don't actually consider it a fail... You be the judge.

My housemate was going through the fridge before she went on holiday, offering me all her perishables, and throwing away things that were already growing fur. I accepted a square inch of Marks and Spencer Extra Special mature cheddar, a pot of pesto, some tomatoes and lettuce (both wrapped in plastic) and... a pot of bacon lardons.

Now if I hadn't taken them, they would have gone in the bin. She couldn't have donated them to a food bank, because they don't accept perishable food. And anyway, the bacon was already past its use by date.

So I consider it a save, not a fail. It's the same with disposable plastics.

A couple of times since I started avoiding plastics, I have gone to a takeaway food outlet or a bar, and asked if I can have the food/drink without the plastic fork/straw. The friendly server says, yeah, no problem, and then out of habit puts it in anyway. Then they realise their mistake and go to take the plastic fork/straw out of my food/drink to throw it in the bin! So the "single-use plastic item" becomes the "zero-use plastic item".

In this case I always stop them and use the plastic fork/straw, but take it home with me and wash it and use it as many times as I can.

So in giving up meat for May I am trying to reduce my carbon footprint. But if the pig has already been raised, fed, watered, slaughtered, drained, chopped, smoked, packaged and shipped, then I see no sense in not at least getting some "use" out of it. And that I did.

My vegetable stew (with bacon lardons)

FOOD WASTE

Did you know that on average each UK household throws away about a quarter of all the food and drink they buy?! That's like getting home from the supermarket with 4 bags full of food, and throwing one straight in the bin. 

I've just signed up to volunteer for FareShare - a nationwide charity which takes excess food stock from supermarket distribution centres and redistributes it to food banks, schools, etc so I've been thinking a lot about food waste. 

Lunch at the Thali Cafe in Southville - who said vegan food was boring?

FLEXITARIANISM
I think I am going to adopt a "flexitarian" diet permanently, even after Meat-Free May is over. Flexitarian means eating a mostly plant-based diet, and eating less, and better quality, animal-derived products.

I plan to not buy any meat or dairy, and only eat local free range organic eggs, and local honey. I will however eat meat and dairy if (like the other day) it will be thrown in the bin otherwise. I think all food is too precious to waste.

Currently I m still buying milk and butter, but slowly cutting down. I've already given up buying cheese, which I would never have thought possible, but I just found it too much of a hassle to find it without plastic packaging. And although I still crave it occasionally, I am discovering some great new flavours to add excitement to my cooking, instead of always relying on cheese (and meat). It's making me a more adventurous cook.

SPONSOR ME

I want you to sponsor me, but I DON'T WANT YOUR CASH!!

Instead, I want YOU to pledge to make a change in your life too.

Why not join me for a meat-free May? Or pledge to stop buying food in plastic packaging? And you don't even have to go down the same lines as me, you could challenge yourself to stop using your car, to give up smoking, save water, or whatever you fancy. There are loads of suggestions on the DoNation website, so have a look around.

Whatever you choose, I look forward to hearing about how you get on! Good luck!