“Namma ooru, semma joru…” – the catchy song playing from garbage collection vehicles every morning is a familiar sound for most Chennai residents. The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) anthem is a reminder to take out the garbage, as the conservancy workers do their rounds in battery-operated vehicles (BOVs) collecting waste door-to-door.  Some residents diligently segregate the waste into dry, organic and reject categories before handing it over to conservancy workers. Others just get rid of the mixed waste without a thought about where it will go and what would be its environmental impact. And the cycle repeats every morning. Ever…

Leftover rotis or rice, a half-eaten sandwich or the crust of the pizza, a forgotten piece of cake or stale cheese, from wilted spinach to expired milk or pickles, excess sambhar delivered with the breakfast ordered, extra food left over after a party,  an ugly looking tomato or a blemished vegetable or fruit, an extremely salty chutney or simply, a recipe gone wrong — all such perished food or leftovers often find their way to the bin, creating a huge amount of food waste from households.   But what’s the big deal in that, one may wonder.  Why food waste matters…