9/05/10 An introduction to This is Rubbish

This is Rubbish is a project that I co founded with Rachel Solnick and that evolved to become a collection of amazing individuals. Broadly based in Machynlleth mid Wales, we are committed to communicating the horrendous scale of food waste that occurs in the food industry and at a consumer level. We aim to use the most creative and participatory methods possible to display the problem and facilitate dialogue around the issue, and wider but related issues. The campaign is dedicated to proposing three main policy suggestions that we feel would greatly reduce the problem of food waste, and also demonstrate that the coorporate big business does not possess an oligarch over government and citizen well being.

This is Rubbish aims to educate people about the scale of food waste in the UK, and to emphasise the fact that reducing this waste is the joint responsibility of people and companies.

• Less than 40% of UK food waste is produced by households.

• We want to see all retailers obliged to report on the food waste they generate in
  their activities, with annual reports audited and publicised by an independent commission.

• We want the government to introduce an obligation upon retailers to reduce
  food waste.

This is Rubbish is particularly interested in developing and delivering public feasting on food that otherwise would’ve been wasted. The feast is a multi faceted event that has huge social value. The idea is to integrate the convivial, participatory and nourishing nature of the feast with explicit cultural and political critique. The critique arises form the fact that all the food and materials used to make the elaborate feast is surplus that is generated and tolerated by immensely powerful industries, business and government.

Watch a This is Rubbish documentary here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWRh95qN01Y
For more information please visit

www.thisisrubbish.org.uk