Scott Paper Brand Suggests Donating Expired Food To Food Banks

expiredfood

Scott Brand — the folks who make Scott toilet tissue and paper towels — wrote an article titled “10 Small Things We Do That Are Actually Very Wasteful” for BuzzFeed in early September. They’re promoting their Scott Naturals? products that don’t have a cardboard tube. While we appreciate their “effort,” we need to seriously clarify one of their points: they suggested being less wasteful by donating “supposedly?past due?food” to food banks.

The people who commented on the article were horrified. So was I.

At first I wondered if we were all just taking their suggestion out of context. Here it is:

food expiration dates
BuzzFeed

I wondered if they perhaps were referring to food that had not actually expired. But no. Clicking on the “40%” link leads to a CNN article that says that “use-by dates are contributing to millions of pounds of wasted food each year.” From the article:

  • Expiration dates on food aren’t related to the risk of food poisoning or foodborne [sic] illness
  • Dates solely indicate freshness, and are used by manufacturers to convey when it’s at its peak
  • Eggs, for example, can be consumed three to five weeks after purchase

 
OK. Fine and good. In my household, we will go with this in some circumstances. I will use milk and eggs in baking and/or soups, for example, if it’s only a couple of days after the expiration date. I know that there’s some wriggle room here. ?(Disclaimer: do NOT do this and get sick and blame me!)

But for most items, my attitude is “better safe than sorry.” Why would I risk our health or even our lives for an $89 can of green beans? If you genuinely wish to explore this topic further, there is actually a robust movement with information that can be helpful to you. ?Be informed, be careful.

Back to our concern — Scott Brand’s reckless advice. There is also the moral issue here. Why would you give food that you don’t consider fit for your own family’s consumption to a food bank? Who does that?

Lastly, it’s important to note that food pantries will throw this stuff out. I’ve volunteered in food pantries. My primary task was sorting food and checking expiration dates, tossing any that didn’t meet standards. This includes dented cans. Don’t give this stuff to food pantries. Just throw it out yourself. If you wouldn’t serve it to your family because of safety concerns, don’t give it to others.

There are all sorts of tips for saving money and being less wasteful. Amy Dacyczyn of The Tightwad Gazette fame notes that when you’re practicing frugality and thrift, you are naturally skirting around some common practices — aka “living dangerously.” But do this in your own home if you must (again, don’t blame ME if you get sick!). And please don’t pass your expired food off to food banks.

There is a video below addressing the issues facing food banks. Please watch it. It’s short. Food banks need food that people will eat. Let’s all make a commitment to go through our own pantries a couple of times a month to find food to donate.

I tweeted to Scott about this issue. Please consider retweeting or composing a tweet of your own to let them know that you think this is bad advice.

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tiffany willis texas liberal america

Tiffany Willis is the founder and editor-in-chief of Liberal America. An unapologetic member of the Christian Left, she has spent most of her career actively working with ?the least of these? and disadvantaged and oppressed populations. She’s passionate about their struggles. To stay on top of topics she discusses,?like her?Facebook page,?follow her on Twitter, or?connect with her via LinkedIn. She also has?a?grossly neglected personal blog?and a?literary quotes blog that is a labor of love. Find her somewhere and join the discussion.

I had a successful career actively working with at-risk youth, people struggling with poverty and unemployment, and disadvantaged and oppressed populations. In 2011, I made the decision to pursue my dreams and become a full-time writer. Connect with me on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.