7 ms·

One of the best things I've done is to challenge myself to buy no packaged food for a week. I made it 2.5 weeks and have reduced my food packaging by about 95%

by spodek 7y ago

One of the best things I've done is to challenge myself to buy no packaged food for a week. I made it 2.5 weeks and have reduced my food packaging by about 95% since, about 4 years ago. I thought it would be hard at first and it was. Then everything changed. I had no idea eating almost exclusively from CSAs, farmers markets, and bulk would - save money - save time - increase diversity - create community and most of all - taste more delicious. I'm never going back to mostly packaged food. I wish I could convey what Trader Joes, etc look like now compared to fresh from the farm. Something like a Surgeon General promoting cigarette brands, which used to seem normal.

Johnny555 7y ago
- save time Does it though? A stack of packaged meals in the freezer that take 2 minutes to heat up and leave only a single utensil behind to wash seems like it would be much faster than preparing any kind of meal from fresh ingredients. And the shopping is faster too, no need to inspect each piece for quality, once you know your favorites, you just load them up in your cart and go.
- orev 7y ago
  But then you’re eating... packaged frozen meals. Most of those are full of salt and preservatives, taste terrible, and are just generally bad. Maybe you have found a magical source of fresh, healthy, good tasting frozen meals, but that absolutely does not exist in most of the US. I think it can be assumed that discussions about wholesome food excludes fast food by default.
  - kthejoker2 7y ago
    No, the discussion is about food, not wholesome food. And the argument is around saving time not nutritional value.
    - orev 7y ago
      No. The OP posted a list of items, all of which need to be taken as a whole for a complete argument. The CP cherry picked one item to skew the discussion to their argument. If we’re talking only about speed, then why not always eat McDonalds? Or Soylent? Clearly it’s because there are other facets of the point being made other than speed alone.
      - RealityVoid 7y ago
        Of course, but then touting speed as one of the advantages is a lie. Even if fresh food is overall better, in the particular aspect of speed, it's worse. That is not cherry picking, it's attacking one of the arguments that rings false.
  - rayiner 7y ago
    What the hell is “wholesome” food? Seriously, it’s a scientifically empty term.
    - hombre_fatal 7y ago
      > wholesome | ˈhōlsəm | adjective: conducive to or suggestive of good health and physical well-being: the food is plentiful and very wholesome. Doesn't need to appear in a peer reviewed journal to know what they mean.
      - rayiner 7y ago
        In scientific terms (the only terms that matter) identify what makes food “wholesome” and quantify the health effects. For example, if I stop eating preservatives, how much longer can I expect to live, in years?
  - turk73 7y ago
    You don't have any kids, do you? There just isn't time to make meals from scratch every night. We do make large dishes and eat leftovers, but when things get out of hand, you have to have a plan. Restaurants aren't the plan.
  - pentae 7y ago
    Please stay on topic, the point was regarding time, not quality.
- drugme 7y ago
  no need to inspect each piece for quality, Because you know it's uniformly mediocre.
- NeedMoreTea 7y ago
  There are home-made meals and part prepared meals and sauces in the freezer that take 2 minutes... It takes no more effort to make a curry, casserole or sauce to feed 8 as to feed 2, so we often make spare for the freezer. Spiced dishes often taste better on the second heating anyway. No more hassle than faffing around with multiple packs that comprise the packaged meal, rice or accompaniment, and the garlic or naan bread. > no need to inspect each piece for quality Well, ready meals are generally lowest possible quality, so I suppose there is a certain consistency. Even if buying the premium ready meal range of the premium supermarket you immediately notice the increase in satisfaction the next time you eat home-made again.

by spodek 7y ago

Johnny555 7y ago

- save time Does it though? A stack of packaged meals in the freezer that take 2 minutes to heat up and leave only a single utensil behind to wash seems like it would be much faster than preparing any kind of meal from fresh ingredients. And the shopping is faster too, no need to inspect each piece for quality, once you know your favorites, you just load them up in your cart and go.

orev 7y ago
But then you’re eating... packaged frozen meals. Most of those are full of salt and preservatives, taste terrible, and are just generally bad. Maybe you have found a magical source of fresh, healthy, good tasting frozen meals, but that absolutely does not exist in most of the US. I think it can be assumed that discussions about wholesome food excludes fast food by default.
- kthejoker2 7y ago
  No, the discussion is about food, not wholesome food. And the argument is around saving time not nutritional value.
  - orev 7y ago
    No. The OP posted a list of items, all of which need to be taken as a whole for a complete argument. The CP cherry picked one item to skew the discussion to their argument. If we’re talking only about speed, then why not always eat McDonalds? Or Soylent? Clearly it’s because there are other facets of the point being made other than speed alone.
    - RealityVoid 7y ago
      Of course, but then touting speed as one of the advantages is a lie. Even if fresh food is overall better, in the particular aspect of speed, it's worse. That is not cherry picking, it's attacking one of the arguments that rings false.
- rayiner 7y ago
  What the hell is “wholesome” food? Seriously, it’s a scientifically empty term.
  - hombre_fatal 7y ago
    > wholesome | ˈhōlsəm | adjective: conducive to or suggestive of good health and physical well-being: the food is plentiful and very wholesome. Doesn't need to appear in a peer reviewed journal to know what they mean.
    - rayiner 7y ago
      In scientific terms (the only terms that matter) identify what makes food “wholesome” and quantify the health effects. For example, if I stop eating preservatives, how much longer can I expect to live, in years?
- turk73 7y ago
  You don't have any kids, do you? There just isn't time to make meals from scratch every night. We do make large dishes and eat leftovers, but when things get out of hand, you have to have a plan. Restaurants aren't the plan.
- pentae 7y ago
  Please stay on topic, the point was regarding time, not quality.
drugme 7y ago
no need to inspect each piece for quality, Because you know it's uniformly mediocre.
NeedMoreTea 7y ago
There are home-made meals and part prepared meals and sauces in the freezer that take 2 minutes... It takes no more effort to make a curry, casserole or sauce to feed 8 as to feed 2, so we often make spare for the freezer. Spiced dishes often taste better on the second heating anyway. No more hassle than faffing around with multiple packs that comprise the packaged meal, rice or accompaniment, and the garlic or naan bread. > no need to inspect each piece for quality Well, ready meals are generally lowest possible quality, so I suppose there is a certain consistency. Even if buying the premium ready meal range of the premium supermarket you immediately notice the increase in satisfaction the next time you eat home-made again.