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New restaurant sparks intrigue with menu featuring 'trash' food: 'Our big goal is to change the way America's eating'

"[We want to] bring the idea to the mainstream that eating trash is cool."

"[We want to] bring the idea to the mainstream that eating trash is cool."

Photo Credit: Shuggie’s

David Murphy and Kayla Abe were shopping at their local farmers market when inspiration struck. 

"Oftentimes, farmers would be like, 'Hey, you want these radishes?'" Murphy told Resy. "... They're like, 'No, just take them, use them for family meal, otherwise we're just going to toss them.'"

That's when the idea for Shuggie's Trash Pie was born. Founded in 2022, the San Francisco-based restaurant aims to reduce food waste, building a community of local farmers and restaurateurs who share the same vision. 

Convincing farmers to sell the "useless" parts of their produce — stuff they'd usually give away free of charge — initially proved difficult. Abe said, "It was a really big push to get people to sell [cauliflower leaves] to us because the farmers were of the mind that they weren't valuable, and why would you want those?"

Now that they've been up and running for a few years, though, it's a lot easier. When farmers have produce they didn't manage to sell at the market, Murphy and Abe are there to give them a helping hand.

They aim to reduce excessive food waste by cooking delicious dishes with "undesirable" ingredients. Think slightly overripe peaches, bruised apples, or even just leftovers. Abe and Murphy buy them up on the cheap before they get thrown away, supporting fellow local businesses and being environmentally conscious in the process. 

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Believe it or not, food waste is a huge contributor to the warming of our planet. When you think of pollution, your mind probably goes to car exhaust pipes or oil spills. 

While those do contribute to our changing climate, food waste in landfills releases methane into the atmosphere, which climate scientist Jonathan Foley told NPR is a "potent greenhouse gas."

Most of this waste comes from restaurants. NPR reports that "the restaurant industry was responsible for almost 10 million tons of leftover food in 2022," citing data from ReFED.

What's the most common reason you end up throwing away food?

Bought more than I could eat 🛒

Went bad sooner than I expected 👎

Forgot it was in the fridge 😞

Didn't want leftovers 🥡

Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

So, is eating out, well, "out?" Not quite yet. In 2020, Michelin announced its brand-new Green Star award, meant for restaurants like Shuggie's that are committed to sustainability and waste-reduction measures. At the time of writing, there are 291 internationally. 

Even if you don't have an award-winning sustainable restaurant near you, there are steps you can take to repurpose food waste that are both cost-effective and eco-friendly. For example, you could try air-frying your potato peels, seasoning them with some salt or dipping them into a sauce. That's one less food scrap in the garbage. 

Abe told NPR, "Our big goal is to change the way America's eating. And bring the idea to the mainstream that eating trash is cool."

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