In recent years, food waste has risen to the top of the political and public agenda, yet until now there has been no scholarly analysis applied to the topic as a complement and counter-balance to campaigning and activist approaches. Using ethnographic material to explore global issues, Food Waste unearths the processes that lie behind the volume of food currently wasted by households and consumers. The author demonstrates how waste arises as a consequence of households negotiating the complex and contradictory demands of everyday life, explores the reasons why surplus food ends up in the bin, and considers innovative solutions to the problem.Drawing inspiration from studies of consumption and material culture alongside social science perspectives on everyday life and the home, this lively yet scholarly book is ideal for students and researchers from a wide range of disciplines, along with anyone interested in understanding the food that we waste.

AcknowledgmentsPrologue: The Social Life (and Death) of Food1. Bringing Waste to the Table2. Ordinary Domestic Practice: Conceptualizing, Researching, Representing3. Contextualising Household Food Consumption4. Anxiety, Routine and Over-provisioning5. The Gap in Disposal: From Surplus to Excess?6. Bins and Things7. Gifting, Re-use and SalvageConclusion: Living with Food, Reducing WasteNotesBibliographyIndex