From expired foods at supermarkets to plates of over-ambitious students, usable food is thrown away at every level of the American food supply chain. According to the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), farmers discard up to 40% of food because it doesn’t meet cosmetic standards that are set by US retailers. It turns out this habit is common across our country. Wasted food could be used to address issues of hunger in America. Not only is food waste concerning because of the loss of the food itself, but also valuable resources like water, fertilizer and labor go into producing this food that will ultimately be thrown away. Stanford dining and Stanford students are responsible for changing their habits that contribute to waste in the food system today.

We all have been to the grocery store, farmers market or dining hall and chosen one apple over another because of a small blemish or because we wanted the bigger one. This happens on a wider scale on farms across the country and lots of food is wasted because stores refuse to purchase it. This is a problem that is starting to be addressed in other countries like France where grocery stores are selling less visually appealing foods to reduce waste. If Stanford students demanded the purchase of the so called “ugly foods,” Stanford could have an impact in reducing waste that is set up by the current system.

Many college campuses have taken steps to reduce waste in the food supply chain by composting or having on-campus farms. While this is a step in the right direction, it is the responsibility of these institutions and their students to encourage positive change beyond the boundaries of the campus. By purchasing ugly foods Stanford could create a market for food that would otherwise be thrown away. Stanford students could help grow this market by showing other schools that students will eat these ugly foods and encouraging those schools to adopt similar programs. Having ugly foods in the dining hall would be a cheap way to contribute to common goals like reducing water consumption and waste.

While significant amount of waste in the American food system is a symptom of  throwing away ugly or undersized foods, a lot of it is thrown away as plate waste. Stanford Dining tries to encourage students to choose healthy options and reduce plate waste by using marketing techniques, like placing the salad bar towards the front of the room or giving fun names for healthy food options. But they cannot force students to choose healthy options or to eat everything that ends up on their plates. In the end, the students throw away what they don’t want.

Stanford has done a lot to mitigate the impact of plate waste primarily by initiating compost programs in all of the dining halls around campus. But what happens to the food after it is composted in the dining halls? Most of it is shipped to a composting site off campus and will be used as fertilizer once it has been decomposed. Stanford estimates that 108 tons of waste a month less is being added to landfills because of the composting program.

While the food that is being composted does not get added to landfills, it is still concerning because it contributes to the waste of resources like water. The composting system is not perfect and user error could lead to ineffective composting. According to Stanford’s zero tolerance for contamination, compost that is not 100% composed of compostable waste cannot be composted. I know even I have accidently thrown away something that shouldn’t have been composted and didn’t think twice about it until I knew this policy. I doubt I am the only one. If students were more aware of the zero tolerance policy it could decrease the accidental piece of plastic from ending up in the composting bins.

A lot of us don’t think about our waste once it is no longer in front of us and being mindful is one way that students can reduce the impact of waste in America. Students should take less food at a time to reduce what could end up in the compost or accidentally in landfills. There are people in this country and around the world who are hungry because of food distribution practices. As a part of a large institution with the power to influence others, you have the ability to impact the food system. Be vocal about what types of food you want to see in the dining halls and reflect those demands in the action of eating a low waste diet.

Contact Asha Brundage-Moore at ashab1 ‘at’ stanford.edu.