Hi again

I am exactly the same, since being a kid we ate everything on our plate and quickly as though food were scarce and could just be taken away, also going through extended periods with no food.very little food due to being poor we always made sure not to waste anything

I am the same now, and will always use up food even if out of date (if nothing is growing on it!) Its also the fact that I think supermarkets are just covering their backs putting the dates they do on...i think any waste is well, a waste

I often buy things cheap tho then cant store them (dont have enough freezer space) and end up overeating just so that I dont waste all the bargain foods have got

wow when i write it down it sounds nuts!

Only healthy perishables, such as fruit, that I bought with good intentions but let go off due to bingeing on junk. Always feel guilty when I do.

I don't think there is anything wrong with making sure you use everything you buy. In fact I think we thro far too much away, so I make sure I use everything I can - unless it is growing something that might benefit medical science ;). I agree that supermarkets do put sell buy dates on things just to cover themsleves leagally and that general most goods are ok way past the date on the package. I am a vegatarian and never heed dates on vegatables but just go by the look of them (often chop off the bad bits). There was a tv programme in the UK not so long ago that that looked at how food decays and came to the conclusion that we were ll being a bit paranoid. Of course, there are things you don't risk - like fish and meats etc - but most things are ok. My rule is, if it tastes 'bad' then don't eat it!

However, I think that is different from 'having' to eat everything you are served which is another issue altogether. I have that ethic that I MUST clean my plate even if I am not hingry anymore. I sometimes get round this by making sure I put only the right portion on my plate nd then immediately freezing the rest, or even throwing the small bits on my plate straight down the toilet before I convince myself to eat them.

there was also a programme in uk on a woman who binged and to stop her doing that she had to pour washing up liquid on the food before she could eat. I am ashamed to say I have thrown food away then gone back and retrieved it later as couldnt stop thinking about it I would have wrapped it up first before throwing away)

I will not throw leftover foods out, but won't get around to eating them either. It drives my husband crazy as we always have all these science experiments going on in the fridge. haha I won't throw it out because of the waste but as there is always new foods being brought into the house, they always seem more appealing.

Be careful though. Some foods can be dangerously bad and still taste OK.

I have a bad habit of getting into binge-mood, and then whipping up a batch of cookies or something. I really delude myself into thinking "I will just have one or two, and then my roommates will love me for making them!" .....ya right.
So after eating way too many completely out of control, I sometimes will just throw out whatever is left. It gets to the point where I will put them in a bag and run water over them so I know in my mind they are gone. It does feel like I'm wasting food, but I do know when I don't do this, I will hide them away in my room, and just binge on them at a later time. Just knowing they are there is like torture, and I will obsess over them until I give in to the binge urges.

I have actually walked a few miles away to put some crisps (chips) in a dustbin there so I knew I wouldnt be able to get them back out again, shows how bad it is for me to have to go to those lengths

wow, I was just reading Chelg's comment and I cannot remember ever having destroyed anything that was eatable. I grew up in a large family and never ever wasted food. Just picturing running water over good cookies made me cringe, haha!

Unfortunately for me, I throw food away all the time. I make so much with the intention of eating it all, that eventually it goes bad and I have no choice but to throw it away. I am talking about like a pot of spagetti enough to feed 20 people and there are only 3 of us living in the house. I always cook more than I need, I guess it's a fear of going hungary from my first marriage.

I find that as a single person, I often have a hard time finishing perishables before they go bad. So I don't feel too guilty throwing those away- I blame the manufacturers for not selling smaller sizes! Blame throwing! Excellent!

But then there are the non-perishables... I tend to binge on granola at home, but I like having a few tablespoons to put in my yogurt as a snack when I'm at work. I solved this by measuring out the granola into mini-tupperwares for the whole week on Sunday night, and then putting the granola on the very top shelf of the cabinet where I can't see it or easily access it. However, if I binge on it, I make myself throw the rest of the bag away. This is how I justify it: What's more important- not binging so that I can better my health and well being, or a half-eaten bag of granola?

No contest. Toss it.