Grandma Trude enjoys games, and so does her family. And since they’re all sustainability fans, they’ve started a family contest to find the best eco-project in the country. Which goes to show that it's worth a detour to Cologne – where crooked cucumbers are saved from the compost heap.
My Dears,So long, summer. Welcome back, autumn. Sitting at the kitchen table on a rainy day like today with warm wool socks on my feet and a steaming pot of tea with peppermint leaves from my garden in front of me, I know my favourite season is over, but it sure is cosy now! And nature badly needs rain. In some parts of Europe, folks would be rejoicing at such a downpour, given the widespread droughts in the news this past summer. That really drove global warming home to a great many people. It was a wake-up call, and maybe it’ll finally change the minds of die-hard climate deniers!
A game without losers
Speaking of driving things home, today I’d like to tell you about my family’s latest brainwave. The idea is for each of us to look for the most genius eco-project in Germany and present it to the rest of the family.That description may sound a bit overblown, but it's just a game: the object is to heighten our environmental awareness and have some fun while we’re at it. It comes down to marketing skills: How do I sell my newly discovered project to my family as the most ingenious and innovative? Snapshots of sustainability efforts, in other words, to help get us through the dark season that lies ahead.
My family and I are passionate about environmental issues and sustainability and doing our part to save the planet every day, mostly through little acts of mindfulness. Plus: We love playing games. Our board for this one is the whole of Germany, and the game will hopefully keep going indefinitely. One good thing is there’s no ranking, no winning or losing projects. Just lots of good ideas we’d never hear about if we didn't discuss them in my living room or family chat group. The idea is for each of us to find a project, whether in our own town or on a weekend outing, business trip or visit to out-of-town friends, that will awe the others and encourage them to follow that example in order to protect the climate and the environment in any little way we can. I’m dying to see what we come up with, and I’ll bet you’re on the edge of your seat too!
Sustainability and environmental protection: What’s the most innovative eco-project in the country?
The “Eco-Project Challenge” (coined by my grandson Michi, of course) has got started and we’re already discussing our first discovery in the family chat room.Don’t waste food
Starting in Cologne: Whilst visiting an old college friend there, my son Frank came across a curious shop called “The Good Food” in the Cologne borough of Ehrenfeld. He was thrilled. The idea is simple: to sell off the produce that doesn’t make it onto supermarket shelves for one reason or another. Imagine that: a separate shop for the rejects! Plus The Good Food runs two “salvaged produce shelves” in other parts of the city as well. What about the prices? Well, to get people thinking about the value of food and how much food we waste nowadays, you simply pay what the food is worth to you. This is a way of salvaging produce that has passed its “best-before” date or has slight blemishes or fails to meet the market standard in one way or another. It may be a cucumber shaped like a “U” instead of an “I”, or a three-”legged” carrot – that sort of thing. “Wonky” fruits and vegetables you’d never see in a regular supermarket because customers tend to consider them defective. I've even caught myself at farmer Georg's, right across the road, reaching for a “normal” straight carrot instead of a crooked one. Which makes no sense because a crooked carrot tastes just as good.Salvaging food: That’s The Good Idea!
The Good Food team have been working to save food from the compost heap since 2014, and running their own shop since 2017. Farmers on the outskirts of Cologne let them come and harvest “misshapen” crops themselves. Other partners supply them with packaged foods that are nearly or already past their “best-before” date. The funny thing is: The “best-before” date, which is required by law in Germany and throughout the EU, is merely a guideline, a recommendation. You’re actually allowed to sell products after that date, provided you keep them stored in the right conditions the whole time – and provided you let customers know the products are expired. The “use-by” date, on the other hand, stamped on packaged foods like minced meat and fish, is different: it’s a question of food safety and must be strictly observed.I really liked the project Frank picked for our Family Eco-Challenge. It made us all think about our own consumption habits. So in that sense this project has already “won”… at least for the time being, till I get back to you with a new brilliant idea. Can’t wait to find out who’ll discover the next winner and what it’ll be.
So how do you like our Family Eco-Challenge?
Wishing you Good Food galore this autumn!
Granny Trude
September 2022