Case Study #1: Freegan Pony Restaurant
There is a freegan restaurant in Paris that opened in November of 2015, called the Freegan Pony restaurant that creates dishes from food that is “too old to sell, but is still good to eat.” This idea of the restaurant is basically demonstrating the basis of “Freeganism”- the practice of salvaging discarded but perfectly good food, for free. The restaurant sells about 80 meals per night, four nights a week, on a pay-what-you-wish basis.
Aladdin Charni is the founder and head of this non-profit restaurant and works with a team of volunteers and paid chefs to run it. He says that he has fed himself this way for years due to his political conviction, and is shocked by the absurd amount of food that is wasted. Charni gets most of the food from his restaurant from the Rungis wholesale market on the outskirts of Paris. Lots of food, including meat, dairy, shellfish, and produce are all thrown away when they are at the end of their shelf lives and are not able to sell anymore. Charni is particularly interested in produce due to the fact that the Freegan Pony restaurant is strictly vegetarian, although sometimes vegan.
Aladdin Charni is the founder and head of this non-profit restaurant and works with a team of volunteers and paid chefs to run it. He says that he has fed himself this way for years due to his political conviction, and is shocked by the absurd amount of food that is wasted. Charni gets most of the food from his restaurant from the Rungis wholesale market on the outskirts of Paris. Lots of food, including meat, dairy, shellfish, and produce are all thrown away when they are at the end of their shelf lives and are not able to sell anymore. Charni is particularly interested in produce due to the fact that the Freegan Pony restaurant is strictly vegetarian, although sometimes vegan.
Case Study #2: Cindy Rosin
Cindy Rosin is a teacher, artist, and freegan activist. She is part of the New York City freegan community, and takes groups on trash tours to different locations for dumpster diving, and teaches the freegans how to dumpster dive. She is also the co-founder of the website Freeganism.info.com that explains the world of Freeganism, how she and others got involved, and how to be an effective freegan in New York City.
“Basically, we are trying to separate our lives from capitalism, to take back our lives. To create a multitude of alternatives that make it possible for communities –not just individuals here and there- to live outside the system… “ -Cindy Rosin |
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