The Kroger Company

Good morning! The other day when I went to the grocery store I was so excited. I thought I'd ask for some of the old produce to feed the chickens and rabbits, boy was my bubble burst! I was told that due to a lawsuit (again?) Kroger had made a rule to not give their produce away. I was told that I could have lettuce cuttings, but nothing else. Don't get me wrong, the big box of what looks to me like fresh lettuce came in very handy; as a matter of fact I used it on our tacos the other night!

Anyone who shops in any produce section in all of America has seen the hardworking produce guys painstakingly pick through the fruits and veggies for the very best looking stuff and you see the other stuff (again, still looks pretty good to me) being wheeled behind the big swinging doors. So, what happens to that stuff? My idea of feeding it to animals seemed to be a great compromise. There are many leftover boxes and containers that could be filled with the produce, stamped with "not meant for human consumption" and sold at a discount.

I went to the Kroger website and found that the company is really pretty earth friendly. They have a sustainability report that shows how the huge company is working towards being greener. On the report it talks about some of the stores donating to homeless shelters, etc. While I am very proud of the fact that they do this, does that mean our homeless are getting what I would consider chicken feed?

Like I said, if Kroger was to sell at a minimal cost what they consider to be trash it would help out tremendously; containers and unwanted food would both get recycled, seems pretty simple to me! If you get a chance, tell your produce manager (or send them a quick note, like I did) that you'd love to see them quit wasting this great natural resource.

PS I forgot to mention that my first ever guest post is on one of my favorite blogs. Check it out at Over Coffee The Green Edition-Thanks for the opportunity Lena!!!