It is a ugly fact that each year more than 96 billion pounds (43.6 billion kgs) of food thrown are thrown away each year in the USA. Although eating from the garbage can may seem like an unfortunate restaurant choice for many, the reality is that dumpster diving is a growing phenomenon in the USA where more than 40% of edible food is wasted.
American filmmaker Jeremy Seifert, after being initiated into the free food harvesting culture from dumpster diving friends, set off on a journey that has grown from an acclaimed film into a revolution to stop the staggeringly obscene amount of food wastage in the US.
“I made the film because there was a deep outrage welling within me every time I bit into a fresh Atlantic Salmon or Australian lamb chops that had been chucked into a trash can moments before and was destined for the landfill,” explains Seifert. “There are over 1 billion people on this planet that suffer from hunger, while every night in the United States millions of pounds of edible food are thrown away. Making the film became a way for me to question, search and take action.”
His multi-award winning film Dive! Living Off America’s Waste follows his journey from casual dumpster foraging to full time food activist. After making the film, Seifert started a petition asking major grocery store chain Trader Joe's to waste less food – the petition now has over 70,000 signatures.
In celebration of Dive! coming out on DVD we have two free copies of the film to give away, but we need you to do a little work for it.
Firstly, check out the trailer below and then “Like” us on Facebook and/or follow us on Twitter where we will announce the winners of the DVDs on August 30th, 2011. Send us your name and mailing address by email to be entered into the draw to win a free copy of the DVD. Your details won’t go to a third party nor be used for any other activity.
If you want to bypass any of the contest stuff and make sure you get yourself a copy of Dive! you can order the DVD from First Run Features or opt to send a copy of Dive! and a copy of Seifert's petition to Trader Joe's (TJ) headquarters, or a TJ's location of your choice.
“The problem of food waste is a bad habit born of unparalleled excess that permeates all of our society. Estimates of just how enormous the problem is suggests that we waste half of all our food in the United States,” explains Seifert.
Dive! Living Off America’s Waste sells for US$18.71.
Visit: www.DivetheFilm.com
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written by Jeffrey , August 07, 2011