'Just Eat It' explores food waste and surplus

If someone challenged you to only eat food waste for six months, would you be able to do it?

Documentarians Grant Baldwin and Jenny Rustemeyer took on the challenge. In the documentary “Just Eat It,” the pair challenged themselves to rely only on discarded food for six months to prove just how much food is wasted every single day.

According to the film, 40% of produced food is discarded or not even permitted to be sold in local grocery stores solely because they did not meet the criteria of “perfect produce.”

“If that much [food] is being wasted, then how much of it is still good and can I eat it?” Baldwin said.

Like all challenges, there were hardships throughout the journey that tested Rustemeyer and Baldwins’ strength to make it to their goal. Rustemeyer believed initially that there was not going to be enough food, but she was far off.

The actual issue was that the pair had an abundance of discarded food that they then had to attempt to eat before it all went to waste once again.

“It’s a chore, right? To go back and try to use what you have before it’s gone bad,” Rustemeyer said.

One issue the film addressed was that an individual’s mindset affects the amount of food being wasted. In the film, Dana Gunders, executive director of ReFED, talked about how people tend to purchase more than they need in groceries.

“If you have people over and you run out of food, you feel you have failed as a host and it can be embarrassing,” Gunders said.

She also addressed that places such as catering services and restaurants have requirements to purchase more than needed to prevent running out of food.

Where does all this wasted food go? Farmer Delaney Zayac discussed the importance of composting in the film, and how it affected the environment in positive and negative ways.

Zayac explained that composting, a process of converting organic materials into nutrient-rich soil, allowed for the growth of produce to be made. However, with the amount of food being wasted, there is not enough energy to convert all the food into compost and most of it ends up in wastelands.

According to Zayac, 4% of energy consumption fell on wasted food alone. The U.S. and European countries have been producing 150% to 200% more food than needed. The film added that the water used to create a singular hamburger was equivalent to the water used in a 90-minute shower.

With the surplus of repetitive food, Baldwin and Rustemeyer struggled to finish the challenge with the three months that remained.

The pair had turned to finding their meals by dumpster diving in the back of grocery stores and buying off-the-shelves food items at other stores. Baldwin said although it was an effective method, it felt like a low. Especially when a store worker accidentally dumped food on him when he was still in the bin.

Despite the embarrassment, Baldwin and Rustemeyer had a surplus of discarded food such as eggs, chocolate bars, yogurts and more. Rustemeyer said that although she wanted to be happy with the amount of food they had and were saving, it was still depressing.

“It’s such a shame that so much food is going to waste,” Rustemeyer said.

Yes, a lot of food had been shown to go to waste, but that did not mean all hope was lost. American art historian Jonathan Bloom demonstrated ways to help preserve wasted farmland food.

Bloom and other individuals had talked about how some farmers had permitted groups to pick leftover produce from the fields of their farms. After this produce was collected, it would be bagged and transported to homeless shelters in need of donations.

“It’s a lot of fun to get out in the field and get your hands dirty,” Bloom said.

He and others had spent the majority of the day picking nearly a hundred bags worth of leftover sweet potatoes which were then transported to a local homeless shelter.

Nearing the end of the film, Baldwin and Rustemeyer had nearly fulfilled their journey of creating meals from discarded food. They spent some time reflecting on their challenge where they addressed some of the complications they faced.

Baldwin explained that many people had misunderstood their challenge and thought that the two were eating scraps and leftovers from restaurants or from other people’s plates. They also faced the challenge of finishing the amount of food they brought back along with finding the room to store it all.

Outside of the complications, the pair only spent $200 on groceries over the six-month period. They had managed to save a whopping $20,000 dollars on food that was discarded from grocery stores and restaurants.

“The best part was that Grant took interest in the kitchen, and now people are learning to use what is in their fridge,” Rustemeyer said.

The film implied a couple of ways to reduce wasting the food that sits in the kitchen. Using your freezers frequently was one of the ways, according to Gunders. She said that it can preserve uneaten food for a long time, and it will keep it fresh.

Baldwin and Rustemeyer added the suggestion to keep an “eat first” bin in the fridge. Whether it’s leftovers, half-used ingredients or simply food in the fridge that is about to go bad, put it first in the fridge.

Food waste has become another contributor to climate change and waste within the world. When someone can recognize the issue, they are already beginning the process of helping, according to Gunders.

“When you’re aware of the issue, you’re already making a difference,” Gunders said.