A pay as you can restaurant from the UK, the Long Table is aiming to reduce food wastage by sourcing local produce.
Due to massive inflation over the last two years in the UK, food prices are continuously rising, leading to food insecurity among the general population.
This food insecurity has become a major reason why millions of adults and children are being diagnosed with vitamin and mineral deficiencies and malnutrition this year.
Despite facing such terrible food shortage, 9.5 million tonnes of edible food is thrown away every year by households, farms, and businesses in the UK.
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The huge food wastage is not only grave injustice to the food-insecure masses but also negatively impacts the environment.
The treatment cost and transportation of food waste are high, and the amount of carbon emissions produced as a result is significant.
The Long Table restaurant was opened in Gloucestershire with the aim of resolving this problem.
The restaurant follows the pay-as-you-can model and allows its guests to eat and pay as much as they can or even for free.
The non-profit organization sources all its produce from local farmers and suppliers to save food meant for the trash cans.
Will North, the restaurant’s general manager told The Guardian, they like to focus on solutions rather than the problems, while also being a real living wage employer.
The eatery does not have any volunteers and all of their 22 part-time and full-time staff are earning the real living wage.
Last year alone, The Long Table served low cost and even free food to nearly 20,000 people and saved about 3.4 million tonnes of food meant for the bins.
The eatery opens at 10 in the morning for coffee and cake, while also serving lunch for five days a week. Dinners are also served on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.
Although the food menu is same for everyone, the chefs like to experiement and try their hand out at various cuisines to make the most of the available ingredients.
As per North, “We are not pro-organic, anti-organic, pro-GM [or] anti-GM, we’re just pro-food.”
Despite not receiving any grants from the government this year, all of their profit comes from the guests who buy their coffee and drinks.
To help those who cannot afford to spend on a meal, they urge others to spend more because every extra dollar matters.
Just like the name, the restaurant does have long tables similar to those found in canteens. They are happy to arrange extra tables and chairs if there are more guests.
While saving food, the restaurant and its owners also aim to inspire others with their unique ideas. They hope to set an example that it is possible to exist and thrive on limited resources without being wasteful.
The Guardian also revealed that two brand-new eateries based on the same concept are about to open soon, one in Falmouth and one in Cirencester.
