The sacrifice of re‐use: the travels of leftovers and family relations

Abstract

This paper focuses on food divestment practices surrounding the consumption of food leftovers in a domestic context. It argues that divestment practices of consuming food leftovers are not the last and disconnected point of a linear consumption process; rather they influence previous and subsequent consumption practices. Drawing on research among middle class British families it shows that consuming leftovers implies a set of practices, (classifying, selecting, storing and re-using) which transform leftovers from polluted to clean food re-admissible to the table. Leftovers' consumption has analogies with the process of sacrifice. It is an everyday thrift practice through which consumers produce excess value to be designated for extraordinary food consumption wherein the family as a whole entity is celebrated. Consuming leftovers requires a high degree of admission to the family and thus only family members, and some of them more than others, are called to such a sacrifice. Therefore it is not only during extraordinary food consumption that familial bonds are reinforced, rather is also during the everyday practice of consuming leftovers that familial bonds are sustained and perpetuated.

The performativity of sustainability: making a conduit a marketing device

“…Surplus and excess are helpful guides to the discussion, although an examination of sustainable waste management as a performation draws our attention to surplus in-the-making, or at least recovering. Evans (2012a) andCappellini andParsons (2013) argue that food leftovers are valued socially within and between households, and that households also use technologies including fridges, freezers and microwaves to postpone and realise these personal and social values. But as households receive requests to place their food leftovers in lined caddies, for weekly or fortnightly collection, economic valuation and calculation are prominent at least for local authorities and waste management companies as food leftovers are combined and rendered as commodity for processing at large scale.…”

“…People work skilfully, adaptively and imperfectly at domesticating products offered through large-scale agriculture, food processing and retailing. This personalising and singularising of food production, distribution and retailing at large scale poses problems for households in passing along food leftovers (Cappellini, 2009). Rather, food left-overs are often stored domestically drawing upon refrigeration or freezing, re-assembled and disguised as meals and acquiring greater personal and family significance, showing an embedding rather than alienating response to food leftovers (Cappellini and Parsons, 2013).…”

Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications

“…People who have a lower risk perception when consuming leftovers (of getting poisoned by food), throw away less food Visschers et al, 2016). Also, eating leftovers is frequently associated with feelings of sacrifice and thrift for the good of the family (Cappellini, 2009;Cappellini and Parsons, 2012). Serving leftovers to children is sometimes accompanied with a sense of guilt for not caring properly for them (Cecere et al, 2014).…”

“…Those who regularly eat leftovers produce less food waste (Stancu et al, 2016;Stefan et al, 2013). Yet, even though reusing leftovers is appreciated for its time-, labour-, and money-saving qualities (Cappellini, 2009;Waitt and Phillips, 2016), its realization often faces considerable barriers. Households have problems in assessing the durability of leftovers and therefore tend to be concerned by safety issues when considering them for reuse (FarrWharton et al, 2014).…”

“…Evans, 2011aEvans, , b, 2012aCappellini, 2009;Cappellini and Parsons, 2012;Ganglbauer et al, 2013;Lazell, 2016;Leray et al, 2016; Meah, (Evans et al, 2012a, b). The scholarly discussion on food waste has benefited from the application of a practice theoretical lens given the shifting of attention to sequences of daily activities around food in households and the social and material contexts of food practices.…”