I still didn’t have a car and was collecting about 10-15kg of juice pulp a week - stems, seeds and all - in reusable containers from local juice bars, and taking them back to the commercial kitchen space on the tube!” A few months later, nibs etc. had a line of juice pulp products with a retail focus, and had earned its first two awards: Cotswold Fayre Young Food and Drink Entrepreneur of the Year, and the WeWork Creator Award awarded by Ashton Kutcher! During the Covid pandemic the small juice shops supplying her with fruit and vegetable pulp shut down. She was devastated. “Covid wiped out our entire juice pulp supply chain; our team shrank and the momentum we'd gained evaporated.” Thankfully, Chloë was able to find a new supplier that presses British apples for cider and juice. “Our focus is now on apple pulp from 100% British apple varieties that will change seasonally. Hero-ing such an English ingredient is an added silver lining.” Chloë says she is especially proud of the greenhouse gas emissions she has reduced. “Since starting my business, I think we've upcycled 4-5 tonnes of pulp, and that number will increase. I am proud of the work we have done to reduce emissions since it hasn’t gone into landfill.” Ends + Stems: Reducing Waste Another entrepreneur trying to help people reduce household food waste to stop the effects of climate change is Alison Mountford from Ends + Stems. After finishing her degree in anthropology, Alison decided she wanted a change. So she packed up and moved from New York to California. She did some career research and saw an article on fastgrowing career opportunities with a bright outlook. The career of Personal Chef was the job that caught her eye. Having always enjoyed cooking, she knew this was the perfect match, so she started a culinary school. At that time the farm-to-table ethos was growing in California, and Alison became part of that. Within half a year, she had already signed her first client, and after that more clients followed. As her personal chef business grew, she started to think about food waste. It’s impossible to predict how much 30-50 families will eat, so Alison ended up with lots of leftovers as she tested out quantities of food for her clients. Being close to Silicon Valley, she also had the opportunity to cater for tech companies and large corporations and their special events. It was there she witnessed firsthand the magnitude of food waste and the barriers to stopping it. These events would have plenty of food options to the point where there would be countless leftovers that would be thrown out as garbage. “For many companies, ‘garbage cost’ is already in their budget but hiring a service and the cost to donate the leftover food was regarded as ‘optional’ and expensive.” Allison was determined to solve the problem. Alison then pivoted towards teaching people to cook tasty, time saving recipes with the “secret ulterior motive” of wasting less food. She taught people tips and tricks for zero waste kitchens, low waste entertaining, and how to best store food so it lasts. Now Alison has a digital business with a membership program that provides plans for great tasting, low waste recipes. Because of her passion for zero waste, Alison has been named a Rubicon Waste Fit Champion, was a finalist for the Spoon Tech Startup Showcase, and has appeared on podcasts and radio shows. She also works as a food waste consultant. Alison’s main suggestion for easily fighting food waste is to buy less food to begin with! She says the key is to plan ahead and only buying what you need. She also said, “we don’t need to be vegetarian but we could eat more plants and less meat.” Decide which recipes you’ll cook for the week before heading to the store. Plan meals that include ingredients you already have. Tr y planning recipes with similar ingredients that you can use for more than one recipe, e.g. include spinach in a curr y for dinner and use the rest in a salad for lunch the next day. Then only buy what you need. Relying on your memor y is faulty, you will buy something you already have or forget something. Check your grocer y list against what you have at home before you shop. If you’re shor t of time, simply take a photo of your shelves before going to the store so you’ll buy what you need. This is a really easy way to stop waste. Look for apps like Too Good To Go that matches you with good food that is sold at a reduced price at the end of a day. Recipe apps like Plant Jammer help you use the food you already have by creating recipes using AI - no need to buy a bunch of new stuf f. Instead, empty your fridge because it’s cheaper and more sustainable!! Bent cucumbers, misshaped carrots, tiny cauliflowers and naked onions are among the misshapen fruits and vegetables. They look wonk y, but there is nothing wrong with them! Stop peeling vegetables. It is a waste of food, time, money, fiber, and nutrients; and contributes waste to landfills and compost bins. Instead just rinse. One of the biggest things that will af fect how long your food lasts is how it is stored. Improperly stored food tends to spoil or go stale much faster and ends up being thrown out before it can be used. If you search the Internet for food storage and food waste, you will find many sites with great tips on what to store where. Plan Your Meals CHLOË & ALISON’S SUGGESTIONS Check Your Pantry Try Some Apps Eat Ugly Store Food Well Alison Mountford is a Chef and Founder of Ends + Stems
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