Any suggestions for "The Pope Francis Waste Not Club"?

[Pug]

Do what you can and can what you do!

I’m more into freezing things myself. Though I do like those mason jars. They come in all sorts of sizes and can be found at thrift stores.

 

[RSD]

There was a very good episode of Women of Grace on EWTN last year. The guest had thought “thrift” would be a virtue mentioned in the Bible, but she could never find it. Later she came to understand that it is not a virtue at all, though giving to others is.

Another word for “thrift” might be “hording” (which says it all).

It is probably a tempation of all of us who strive to reduce waste to save a good many things we think we might be able to use later – pack-ratting. I plead guilty!! And since I’m married to another pack-rat, we’re up to our ears in junk. This, of course, is better than simply throwing things away to go to some land fill. However, I guess we need to find a balance – giving some things to the poor, recycling others, reusing what we can, and not feeling bad that the thing we need most right now, which we had in our garage or closet for many years, we gave to the poor or recycled last month.
!

“Thrift” is not the same as “hoarding”, although they can appear to be related. Many sins continue in our lives because we rationalize them as being some related virtue. Thrift might tell us not to buy an unneeded item, which hoarding never would. Thrift might tell us to get rid of stuff we don’t need, rather than expand our storage facilities. For instance, it is well known that many people take storage buildings for stuff they don’t need, don’t want, never look at again after they put it in the storage building, but they can’t bear to get rid of. That is hoarding, but not remotely thrifty.

Thrift is not by itself a virtue. However, it is a part of good stewardship. It is a part of the cardinal virtue of prudence.

 

[Bonnie]

Thrift is not by itself a virtue. However, it is a part of good stewardship. It is a part of the cardinal virtue of prudence.

Which reminds me of some of my favorite verses from Proverbs:

In the house of the wise
are stores of choice food and oil,
but a foolish man
devours all he has.

Proverbs 21:20

A generous man
will himself be blessed,
for he shares his food
with the poor.

Proverbs 22: 9

I think these 2 verses go together well - if you are wise, you have the food to share.

 

[LegoGE1947]

I’m more into freezing things myself. Though I do like those mason jars. They come in all sorts of sizes and can be found at thrift stores.

Actually so are we. I remember as a kid my mom and dad had a huge garden and canned much of the harvest of that garden. It was a hot, messy process. We just go to the super-duper mart and buy frozen vegetables and skip the canning stuff. Anyone who enjoys canning I’m not putting you down. It’s just not my “thing” I’ll agree with you about the mason jars being kind of cool. Remember Roger Miller’s song “Chug-a-Lug?” He talked about “chugging grape wine from a mason jar” I don’t drink wine but I’ve had cold water from a well or ice tea from a mason jar.

 

[4elise]

my husband makes note pads — cuts up papers that are printed on one side - uses cardboard all about 3 x 5 then he will use a drop of glue at the top and put together note pads put a rubber band at the top and makes his own pocket sized note pads

 

[Pew7]

The concept of recycling is very much in line with us being good stewards of the earth. However, I cannot tie this into the Holy Father’s comments which were “the food that you throw away was stolen from the poor”. The issue he focuses on is more serious than being kind to Gaia.

In order for certain fruits and veggies to be sold in the grocery store, they have to be of a certain size and color and shape. The farmer cannot sell fruits and veggies that do not meet certain government standards. So the farmer throws them away as imperfect. Note that what is thrown away is perfectly edible and healthy, It just looks imperfect.

Anything marked “fresh” in the grocery store has to be thrown away before the next day. there are some food pantries that pick up day old stuff from stores, but not enough, Massive amounts of good edible food are thrown away daily.

And the poor get poorer.

This mentality not only takes food from the poor, but it results in less a supply of fruits and veggies, so the prices go up, further taking the goods from the poor. Effectively it doubles the stealing.

Of course the most healthy foods are organic, but organic foods are so much more expensive to raise. Then in the distribution system, they have to be segregated from the non-organic foods (separate mills, separate trucks to the mills and stores, etc.) Our new found craze for organic foods means that the wealthy eat healthy. But the poor…eh, who cares?

We need a religious order as big as the Jesuits to raise organic foods, mill them, and market them to the poor. That order then can also ensure that the food pantries pick up food every day from every grocery and every restaurant. I would recommend the Benedictines as they have a ecological charism. But we can help

 

[lynnvinc]

Healthy, simple eating, conserves ones health, therefore the resources of the larger society. The healthcare system of today is extremely wasteful of resources. Good stewardship of your body is good stewardship of the earth.

Extremely good point. The smart, concerned person will look at all the ramifications (even the down sides) and weigh everything they can think of re our actions.

I like the idea of simple eating. As it turns out I get migraines from MSG/aspertame/sulfites/sodium benzoate, and most processed foods in the grocery store have one or more of these (MSG hidden under some 50 names). That forces me to eat more unprocessed foods, which I think it also good for the health.

Also eating raw produce (veggies & fruits) is really good for the healt – for the heart, cancer, and gall badder problems (I’ve cured my gall badder problems this way). One can even eat corn on the cob raw, without cooking – tastes sweet and has the enzymes (that cooking destroys) that are so good for health, fighting cancer, etc.

So we tend to shy away from simply carbohydrates, eating whole wheat & brown rice preparations.

Now I must confess that rice actually has a fairly high GHG footprint, as high as meat. However, since my husband is from S. India he has to have his rice nearly every day, that is our one big foot splurge.

 

[RSD]

Extremely good point. The smart, concerned person will look at all the ramifications (even the down sides) and weigh everything they can think of re our actions.

I like the idea of simple eating. As it turns out I get migraines from MSG/aspertame/sulfites/sodium benzoate, and most processed foods in the grocery store have one or more of these (MSG hidden under some 50 names). That forces me to eat more unprocessed foods, which I think it also good for the health.

Also eating raw produce (veggies & fruits) is really good for the healt – for the heart, cancer, and gall badder problems (I’ve cured my gall badder problems this way). One can even eat corn on the cob raw, without cooking – tastes sweet and has the enzymes (that cooking destroys) that are so good for health, fighting cancer, etc.

So we tend to shy away from simply carbohydrates, eating whole wheat & brown rice preparations.

Now I must confess that rice actually has a fairly high GHG footprint, as high as meat. However, since my husband is from S. India he has to have his rice nearly every day, that is our one big foot splurge.

What does GHG footprint mean?

 

[lynnvinc]

The concept of recycling is very much in line with us being good stewards of the earth. However, I cannot tie this into the Holy Father’s comments which were “the food that you throw away was stolen from the poor”. The issue he focuses on is more serious than being kind to Gaia.

Let’s get over Gaia please. As far as I know the ancient Greek religion is no longer practiced, and even in its height Gaia had become passe, replaced by Zeus, etc.

However, it would be good to strive avoid polluting various aspects of the earth – such as people’s drinking water and the air they breathe, or harming people’s food productivity – and using up finite resources in profligate and prodigal ways, reducing resources for others.

Recycling being just one thing out of 1000s that we can and should do – to help other people; which is in no way some propitiation of a spirit being like “gaia” that really has no power to help us, and does not even exist to appreciate what we might do for her.

In order for certain fruits and veggies to be sold in the grocery store, they have to be of a certain size and color and shape. The farmer cannot sell fruits and veggies that do not meet certain government standards. So the farmer throws them away as imperfect. Note that what is thrown away is perfectly edible and healthy, It just looks imperfect.

Anything marked “fresh” in the grocery store has to be thrown away before the next day. there are some food pantries that pick up day old stuff from stores, but not enough, Massive amounts of good edible food are thrown away daily.

And the poor get poorer.

This mentality not only takes food from the poor, but it results in less a supply of fruits and veggies, so the prices go up, further taking the goods from the poor. Effectively it doubles the stealing.

Of course the most healthy foods are organic, but organic foods are so much more expensive to raise. Then in the distribution system, they have to be segregated from the non-organic foods (separate mills, separate trucks to the mills and stores, etc.) Our new found craze for organic foods means that the wealthy eat healthy. But the poor…eh, who cares?

We need a religious order as big as the Jesuits to raise organic foods, mill them, and market them to the poor. That order then can also ensure that the food pantries pick up food every day from every grocery and every restaurant. I would recommend the Benedictines as they have a ecological charism. But we can help

Good insights and ideas. We can also reduce our own personal wastage of food, as well.

I think Pope Francis is also calling on us to not only reduce food wastage, but all wastage. It just happened that World Environment Day on June 5th had the theme this year (promoted by the FAO - Food & Agr Org) on reducing food wastage so as to help the poor and malnurished. And I sort of think that the Vatican has some connnection with World Environment Day and/or the FAO (which is headquartered in Rome), and perhaps proposed the topic, but at least Pope Francis is running with it.

 

[lynnvinc]

What does GHG footprint mean?

Greenhouse gas footprint. I put that instead of the usual carbon footprint, since it is methane that’s involved in rice production…but come to think of it, that is also a form of carbon, CH4.

We also found out recently that rice tends to have higher levels of arsenic than other foods. I think I’ll have chappati (from wheat) tonight instead of dosai (from rice & lentils).

 

[LegoGE1947]

Greenhouse gas footprint. I put that instead of the usual carbon footprint, since it is methane that’s involved in rice production…but come to think of it, that is also a form of carbon, CH4.

We also found out recently that rice tends to have higher levels of arsenic than other foods. I think I’ll have chappati (from wheat) tonight instead of dosai (from rice & lentils).

Isn’t there also methane in animal droppings, particularly from larger animals such as cows, horses, etc?

 

[4elise]

Isn’t there also methane in animal droppings, particularly from larger animals such as cows, horses, etc?

I understand that to be true - one of the many reasons we have moved to a plant based diet.

 

[epan]

I buy my clothes at thrift shops, and then donate them back to update my wardrobe. This works for everything from casual wear to Hugo Boss suits. Also, it’s a good way to travel. Just buy your clothes cheaply when you reach your destination from a good charity. Wen you leave, then just donate them back. You support a god cause, and travel without bothering with luggage.

 

[lynnvinc]

Isn’t there also methane in animal droppings, particularly from larger animals such as cows, horses, etc?

Yes, that’s true – chicken poop as well – and from cow, which have ruminant digestion, producing methane.

Here’s a source that doesn’t show such a high carbon footprint for rice (compared to meat): greeneatz.com/foods-carbon-footprint.html

However, a more holistic study (including crop growing, transportation or “food miles,” etc) showed rice with a higher footprint (equal to some meat)…for Sweden, with transportation from importing being the largest factor, tho with the CH4 during wet-farming of it mentioned as somewhat high. So with rice grown here in the U.S., it would have a lower foodprint. See smmi.nu/karlsson_kanyama.pdf

 

[4elise]

I buy my clothes at thrift shops, and then donate them back to update my wardrobe. This works for everything from casual wear to Hugo Boss suits. Also, it’s a good way to travel. Just buy your clothes cheaply when you reach your destination from a good charity. Wen you leave, then just donate them back. You support a god cause, and travel without bothering with luggage.

What a great idea!

 

[Edmundus1581]

epan;10879769:

I buy my clothes at thrift shops, and then donate them back to update my wardrobe. This works for everything from casual wear to Hugo Boss suits. Also, it’s a good way to travel. Just buy your clothes cheaply when you reach your destination from a good charity. Wen you leave, then just donate them back. You support a god cause, and travel without bothering with luggage.

What a great idea!

I like it!

With the internet we can find our thrift shop before we travel.

eg. “thrift shop vancouver”

 

[DarkLight]

The concept of recycling is very much in line with us being good stewards of the earth. However, I cannot tie this into the Holy Father’s comments which were “the food that you throw away was stolen from the poor”. The issue he focuses on is more serious than being kind to Gaia.

In order for certain fruits and veggies to be sold in the grocery store, they have to be of a certain size and color and shape. The farmer cannot sell fruits and veggies that do not meet certain government standards. So the farmer throws them away as imperfect. Note that what is thrown away is perfectly edible and healthy, It just looks imperfect.

Anything marked “fresh” in the grocery store has to be thrown away before the next day. there are some food pantries that pick up day old stuff from stores, but not enough, Massive amounts of good edible food are thrown away daily.

And the poor get poorer.

This mentality not only takes food from the poor, but it results in less a supply of fruits and veggies, so the prices go up, further taking the goods from the poor. Effectively it doubles the stealing.

Of course the most healthy foods are organic, but organic foods are so much more expensive to raise. Then in the distribution system, they have to be segregated from the non-organic foods (separate mills, separate trucks to the mills and stores, etc.) Our new found craze for organic foods means that the wealthy eat healthy. But the poor…eh, who cares?

We need a religious order as big as the Jesuits to raise organic foods, mill them, and market them to the poor. That order then can also ensure that the food pantries pick up food every day from every grocery and every restaurant. I would recommend the Benedictines as they have a ecological charism. But we can help

For now, buying from farmer’s markets and co-ops can circumvent some of this. A lot more of the imperfect produce makes it to the fruit stand to be sold than would in the grocery store. It also saves because you aren’t paying for transporting the produce from wherever to where you live.

 

[Country_Gal]

For now, buying from farmer’s markets and co-ops can circumvent some of this. A lot more of the imperfect produce makes it to the fruit stand to be sold than would in the grocery store. It also saves because you aren’t paying for transporting the produce from wherever to where you live.

The imperfect produce goes to juice, pre-prepared dishes, canned soup, and many other uses. It does not get thrown out.

 

[epan]

What a great idea!

Haha. Thanks. In college, I worked for a person whose company grossed more than $700 millions per year. We once had the same suit, in a meeting. I paid $2.50 for the suit. He might have paid $3k. We did peer reviews in that company, and he supervised me. For his review I wrote, “Tom is alway well turned out, but I think he pays full retail prices for his clothes”

 

[Cheyenne04]

BTW, the very first step in not wasting is often the easiest to do, and at the same time the hardest emotionally. Don’t buy things you don’t need. For many of us, accustomed as we are to vast luxury, in comparison with our actual needs, there is a peculiar but very real pleasure in buying things, even if we don’t need them at all. Most women will tell you that they have never worn many of the clothes or shoes they have bought. Men often buy exercise equipment or tools that they don’t use. Many of us buy food or drink that we don’t eat, or if we do eat it we regret it afterward. Try very hard to get into the habit of asking yourself if you really need something, or even really want it, before you buy it.

Do I WANT it? or Do I NEED it? helps me.

I walk. When I see trash I pick up – except for cigeratte butts and Kleenex because of the fatal germs that could be on each. I guess I could have a baggie with me to pick them up. We also have a “green” garbage can where I feel comfortable throwing away things from the refrigerator or items that have gone bad & know they will be turned into compost instead of being buried for hundreds of years.