I am so glad this documentary exists. I agree 100% with everything Jeremy said. It is up to everyone to tackle this problem, although I agree institutions like grocery stores could make a huge impact. It's such a stupid, yet vastly affective problem, that could be easily changed with a little effort from everyone (considering we are all guilty). I first became interested in this issue when I was 18 years old and a waitress at Carrabba's. One day I asked the manager why we waste so much food and recyclable materials. Day after day, it was astonishing how much we threw away.
One reason they had for not doing away with all this 'waste' in an alternative way was that you must go through the government and deal with an extra tax to have these materials recycled. There is a similar process for giving away restaurant food. Because they are a private institution with original recipes, they must write off the food they give away as charity, rather than a general donation. (I would need to do further research to specifically explain how that works). Yet, they end up paying for this tax and more through the Waste Management and landfill process anyway, as Jeremy pointed out. So in reality, as Jeremy also pointed out, this is a direct result of laziness and apathy.
I have a second thought. If so little people are bringing this food to the homeless, why not create an effort to educate the homeless, so that they may bring food to themselves? Jeremy dumpster-dives daily and eats very well. If the homeless or those in poverty with hungry families were aware of just how well off they could be following suit, and these institutions are too lazy to make any effort, why not bring their attention to where unexpired, free food is? Jeremy showed Trader Joe's refusal to move their food anywhere but to the trashcan repetitively. I wonder what would happen if he instead used all his efforts to move the people who need it to the trashcans...
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