Rotisserie chickens in the trash: I worked in a supermarket and saw shocking food waste every day

[31j20b3]

9. There are corporate, municipal, state and federal rules on food handling

In practice following those rules is the most important thing for the local food store

That means things get tossed. HUGE amounts of bread for example get tossed to meet best used by dates

Deli stuff gets tossed, especially if it was placed in unrefrigerated inserts in a customer accessible display

Meats get tossed

Blemished produce gets tossed, not because it's likely to make some one sick, but because shoppers are fussy and the longer a blemish works its life on the side of a tomato, the bigger it gets, same with many fruits, and also "wet" veggies

It's a shame to waste it. The stores hate the cost of what they call "shrinkage". But it's part of doing business.

Most businesses have no mechanism to "gift" food, because such a gift would come with LIABILITY

So, it's tossed. The farmers were paid, the produce vendors were paid, the clerks were paid. The store doesn't want to pay a lawsuit.

Around here, the stores will arrest people for "appearing to be dumpster diving".

I worked in a grocery store 6 or so blocks from the Milwaukee Zoo. The store could have moved blemished and near outdated food to animals in the zoo. But Zoo animals are worth many thousand$. Who wants the risk of liability?

Not One.