Bbc learning english 6 Minute English United against food waste

6 Minute English
 
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Sam 
Usually middlemen are commissioned – they received a payment from the 
supermarkets directly related to the amount they sell. But with Josefina’s online 
shop, farmers get a fair price for their food, customers get high-quality, fresh 
vegetables, and less food is wasted. 
Neil 
Another problem is that we throw away food after we’ve bought it. In fact, the UN 
estimates that 60 percent of food waste happens in this way, often because it’s 
past the use-by date and might not be safe to eat. 
Sam 
But according to green designer, Solveiga Pakstaite, these use-by dates aren't 
always accurate, something she discussed with BBC World Service’s, People Fixing 
The World. 
Jo Mathys
Well, food makers don’t know how people will keep their products, so for instance, 
they might forget to put their groceries straight in the fridge when they get home. 
So what they do is they calculate the use-by date using a very cautious estimate. 
Solveiga Pakstaite 
Food producers and supermarkets… they kind of have to calculate it to the worst-
case scenario because they don't know which product is going to get stored at the 
wrong temperature, so they have to blanket apply a shorter date to protect 
consumers. 
Neil 
Supermarkets set cautious use-by dates for the worst-case scenario – the worst 
case that could possibly happen in a situation, for example, someone getting sick 
and dying of food poisoning. In other words, they blanket apply use-by dates. 
Here, blanket is an adverb meaning applied in the same way to everything, even 
when there are differences between those things.
Sam 
Doing this protects customers from bad food, but it also means a lot of safe-to-
eat food gets thrown away. Maybe it’s best to stick to local, seasonal food after 
all. Anyway, Neil, what was the answer to your question? 
Neil 
Right. I asked you which food could be grown in Britain all year round. You said 
kale, which was… the correct answer! Unlike strawberries and rhubarb, kale grows 
in all seasons, and what’s more, it’s good for you too! OK, let’s recap the 

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