Tutorial

Today I had a really good tutorial with Fred. It gave me a lot more confidence in where I currently am in both my dissertation and practice response

Notes from the session:

• Impressed with interviews
• Remember... 'SO WHAT?'- why am I doing this? What is my question?
• Keep linking the points I'm making back to my question.
• Have fun with the practical-explore all the options

Written:

Structure is far clearer. 

Can food waste be avoided by engaging people in local initiatives?

Yes but need to inform, educate and encourage people!

Practical:

Drawing focus on misshapen veg

Products and proposals for info pack, wall drawings, ceramics etc

Email Response

Sam Smith, founder of The Real Junk Food Project is doing a talk at Leeds University this month and I got a ticket! The talk will be followed by a networking event with various TRJFP groups from around the UK and food provided by the project. Should learn a lot!

Line, Shape and Texture

I want my product/outcome to use line, shape and texture as I feel that this is where my practice is heading and I feel it would be most appropriate for the subject and audience. Throughout my sketchbook I have started exploring this through different mediums and exploration. I've picked a few pages that I think illustrate that. It explores the use of texture and collage, coloured pencils, different pen thicknesses and brush pen.

Email Response-Rejection

The Real Junk Food Project

The other day I contacted The Real Junk Food Project in Leeds to ask if I could interview them. They were happy to speak to me, so I visited the cafe yesterday. I thought what they do is fantastic and impressed with how well the are doing. They have over 100 other cafe's across the UK and one of the guys I spoke to is heading out to the US to set one up out there. Feeding the hungry and using up food waste is their main concern, not how the place looked. They don't judge people or turn them away. Customers can how in any way they can, whether that's with what money they have or just by helping wash up their dishes. It makes me happy to know that's there's such kind people out there. 

 It will be a great help towards my dissertation and they told me of some other contacts I could get in touch with. It was interesting to hear what they had to say and what they do compared to 

my interview with Love Food, Hate Waste.

I mentioned my practical idea and asked if he had any suggestions. He said what would be great is if they had some kind of imagery that would help communicate what food they are serving, as they have a lot of customers that can't speak English. One of the guys I spoke to goes in to schools to teach children about food waste. Could this be an area to look at? 

He recommended I speak to the teacher there.

I did a couple of quick sketches in my visual journal:

I Won a Juicer!

At The Big Freeze event last week I entered a prize draw and I actually won! I never win anything, how exciting! I won a juicer and it arrived today. Haven't actually got anywhere to put it because our kitchen's so tiny but oh well! If it wasn't for CoP3 then I wouldn't have won it...yay for dissertations?

Drawing is Thinking

I really feel like I'm making good use of my sketchbook this year and can really see a different in the way I've started to use my sketchbook since level 4. There are two sides to this module and two ways to approach it. I want to separate the dissertation and practical in order to let myself have fun. If I focus too much on the written sign then I will struggle to enjoy the module.

One side of my research is done through fact finding but I want to ensure that I research through drawing also. I aim to explore and develop my work and I feel like my sketchbook is starting to show this. Here are a few pages I have selected that I think show this. I thought it best to get started by loosening up and exploring ways of drawing.

Updated Essay Structure

Wonky Food

During my research I have found that there are a number of different reasons why there is so much wasted food. One that serves a massive role, is the rejection on misshapen veg due to cosmetic standards. A he amount of food is wasted because a vegetable is either too big, too small or the incorrect shape. How crazy is that?? It all ends up chopped up in your meal anyway!

This is clearly something that I need to investigate further.

Is this because of the farmers? Government? Supermarkets? or consumers?

How can this be solved?

How can this be highlighted?

Vlogger Talking About Food Banks

Vlogging has become such a huge thing in the past few years and some famous youtubers have become sort of celebrities. This particular Youtuber 'Sprinkle of Glitter' (Louise) has over 2 million subscribers. I haven't really seen any of her videos since I was younger as her audience tends to be teens, however when I was researching food banks it suggested this video.

She talks about what food banks do and why she's started getting involved. She also says how easy it is to find food banks in your local area. I think it's great that she's using her fame and youtube channel to show young teens what they can do and teach them.

Food Waste Wedding

I found this interview about possibly the UK's first food waste wedding! Save the Date Café worked with the Real Junk Food Project, a Leeds-based organisation that collaborates with caterers and activists to change the perception of food wastage.

Someone else I could contact?

Love Food Hate Waste Interview

Today I went to The Big Freeze event in Leeds. I had arranged to speak to one of the organisers there, so I prepared some questions for her. The interview was a success and I found out some great information. It was really interesting!! I recorded the interview so I have all the information saved. What was also great was that she told me a lady from Asda was there that I could talk too, so I got two interviews.

Awkwardly, I wasn't prepared to talk to someone from Asda and didn't feel like my questions were all appropriate. The lady gave me her business card so that I could email her for any other questions. WOO!

The event as a whole was great. It really focused on how freezing food could save waste and in turn save money! Did you know you could freeze eggs? They had such a great turn out which shows that people are interested. There was facts and activities and things to take home with you. I got a spaghetti portion tool (always wanted one of them), plus I was given a book full of activities and information.

I thought it was important to ask questions which may also help my practical (although all the information informs both practical and written). I asked if a 'pack', which I am thinking of producing is appropriate and what the find is most effective what it comes to getting information across. I was told that a simple poster isn't going to do anything. People will look, think about it, walk away and forget. They set up a lot of events and programmes within the community as cooking lessons and food waste activities. It's become clear to 'Love Food Hate Waste', that people learn more and change when they're actively involved.


I made notes from the interview:

What does Asda do to avoid food waste?

·      Instead of BOGOF deals we do Link saves so people can get more choice instead of getting loads of the same product.
·      85 percent said they’d like Asda to help them reduce food waste at home
·      One of the reasons we’ve focused on food waste is because customers have told them it’s important.
·     71 percent said they’d stop buying the product from them if they wasted it. As a retailer this is something that concerns us
·      Customers aren’t happy not getting value for money
·      Worked on pack size, instructions, storage to help customers and portion sizing.
·      Through august they had love food hate waste activity in store. Where community life champion giving out freebees, tips, recipes, on pack stickers,
·      They though how we can help consumers change their behavior?
·      A lot of things are down to habit
·      How people are brought up
·    Works with fareshare
·      Because they don’t own the food they cant do anything with it so before it would go in the bin but now it gets given to fareshare and they redistribute it out to 20 other charities so that gets rid of most of the waste in our depots
 
Do you think supermarkets are a large reason food waste occurs?

·      People easily push the blame on to supermarkets
·      Asda and other supermarkets do try
·      Taking responsibility for their actions

Do supermarkets work together or are they competitive on who wastes the least food?

·      ‘We like to be the first to do it but we often share what we did.
·     Supermarkets have a target to reduce customer food waste by 5 percent
·      Sit in on groups together-court hold commitment
·      Igd/iud group helping waste and employees
 
What do you think it the most affective why to communicate food waste with consumers?

·      Study showed face to face interaction with people helps to reduce food waste rather than a sticker
What is Asda’s view on wonky veg? Do you sell it?
·      Trial in 10 stores selling wonky veg for cheaper
·      Work with carrot and onion suppliers
·      Ones that aren’t good enough get battened or grated
·      Onions- get sent to ready meal suppliers- already chopped up
·      Stew packs
·      Sell stuff cheap

Do you see a link between selling patterns and the media? Such as cooking programmes?

·      Because of cooking shows people are more inclined to buy fresh produce and don’t know what to do with it
·      Bake off has got more popular and when it’s on they know that sales in certain products will go up- baking stuff
·      Tv shows and trends will prompt things
·      Sales are also dependent on the weather
·      Plan for sunny weekend-bbq
·      Trends in industry

The Real Junk Food Project

I found an article posted last year by itv News where they interviewed TRJFP, again showing that it's such a current issue! There were a couple of videos that would be great to but up on here but I can't seem to share them on Blogger. I took some screenshots instead.

The interview shows a large amount of food coming in from a local church food bank. The Real Junkfood Project in Armley only serves meals created from food destined for landfill. Numerous restaurants, supermarkets and cafes in the city have now got behind the scheme and donate food on a daily basis after they were approached by project leaders.

European commission- Food Waste Advert

I found what I think is a food waste advert posted by European commission. I think it's really simple but clever. It over exaggerates but when you think about it, it's true! They've used really casual music suggesting that it is such a casual thing. We do it all the time, everyday. Society constantly saucy throw food away, without thinking of the consequences and how machete's adding up to. Fair enough, most people cut a small square out of each slice of bread. But if you think of all the children that don't like to eat their crusts (I was one of them) then it all adds up to so much bread!

Tristram Stuart delves into the shocking data of wasted food, calling for a more responsible use of global resources.


I've been reading Tristram Stuart's book as part of my secondary research, and already I've found it really helpful and interesting. What's also good is that in his book, he talks about world wide food waste, but also talks about just British which is more relevant to what I want to find out. I don't just want loads of facts based on americas waste.

I found a talk he did for TED. He really makes people think.

Questions for Saturday's Interview

Love food hate waste

Permission to record and use data in dissertation

Email to say if wants to withdraw

Questions

1.     What do you do?

2.     Describe your set up:

·       Place

·       Location

·       Type

·       Open hours

·       Capacity

3.     Why they set up - what motivated them to take action against the issue?

4.     How are you structured / funded

·       Staffing.

·       Premises / utility bills

·       Transport to pick up food

5.     What do they think the main issue around food poverty and food waste are?

a.     Do you think the 2 are linked?

6.     What new things have you discovered since setting up?

7.     Who uses your service?

a.     Really needy or do gooders

b.     Do you think the service users support each other - share experiences and tips

8.     Do you supply data stats to local councils etc so they can monitor the level of support you are offering?

a.     Can you provide me with nay stats on service usage?

9.     Have you ever been asked to - would it be useful if you did

10.  What should be done to alleviate this issue in society?

a.     Consumers

b.     Supermarkets

c.     Policy level

11.  Do you think your service helps

·       Short term

·       Long term

·       What good things have occurred due to your existance

12.  Does the existence of such places hinder the issue being bypassed at policy level - e.g. if you’re sorting it out then the council etc. don’t need to.

i.e. Are you adding to the problem?

13.  How much food waste do you produce?

14.  What do you do with it?

Describe pack

Raise awareness of support mechanisms / local groups and charities

What do you think would be good to include in the pack that services users could take away, or establishment could have posters etc displayed in their venues.

Out of these things which are useful (inc other ideas)

FAQs on…? What do people ask you about?

1st Support Session

Ok so today didn't go quite the way I wanted it! I wanted to come away with a clear essay structure that I could go through with Fred on Friday. I have part or a start of a structure. One because Aly was late starting, two because she had to go through some admin stuff before we started, and three because I also wanted to sort of some questions for interviews and there wasn't time to complete both!

So, heres the start of my essay structure haha:

Chapters

Intro

·       Set scene why issue now

·       Why good to study

·       Local focus

Food waste

·       what is food waste

·       stats/ fact figures

·       why it occurs

Consumerism

Broad and general

How tackled on local level

Supermarket

·       Initiatives to combat it

·       Laws

·       Case studies

·       examples

Initiatives - general what’s out there

Local initiatives

Real junk food project - expanding

Not that great is it? But it will be all sorted next week!



To do for next session:

Student:

• Start blog
• Keep bib as go along
• Try reading card with new info - see how goes
• Do interview - love food hate waste - record it
• Move proposal info in to docs = start writing - anything unsure of place for, dump at bottom of doc for discussion
• ·Make a doc per chapter

Next time:

• Structure development
• See how interview went
• Tweak questions?