Waste not, want not: We can't sustain our throwaway culture
Ireland generates over one million tonnes of food waste per year. The average household is responsible for 117kgs of that waste, costing each between €400 and €1,000 per year. Home composting is one way to reduce waste. Picture: iStock
Previous generations who lived in rural Ireland consumed what they grew, bought only what they needed, and knew how to cook a meal from leftovers.
It was a lifestyle embedded in good housekeeping, economic need, and an adherence to an inherited philosophy that is neatly summed up in the simple message: “Waste not, want not.” People planted potatoes and vegetables in their back gardens, reared hens that laid eggs, had their own milk supply, cured salty bacon, baked bread and cakes, cooked apples from the orchard, and made their own butter and jams.
