Taste not waste - squash vs. pumpkin I How to have a more sustainable Halloween.

It's likely when someone says 'Halloween' one of the first things that comes to your mind is pumpkins. The tradition of carving ghoulish faces into them is an annual event for families and children across the world, but there is an even scarier side and that is the food waste impact of growing them. In the UK alone around 14 million pumpkins get wasted every year which is the equivalent of 18 thousand tons of food waste. So what drives this waste and are there alternatives for a more nutritious sustainable and tastier Halloween?

[@vanessaevans3401]

Well said. It’s about time people got it through there heads that things need to change

[@riverfordorganicveg]

... and that change can be about fun, enjoyable stuff!

[@lindabennett4842]

In Australia, we don't really celebrate Halloween or Thanksgiving to much extent, and we have opposite seasons to the Northern hemisphere. However, we always see pumpkins in the Veggie Aisle at our supermarkets because they are regularly used for roasting, curries, soups, salads etc in our cooking here. I've never known anyone here who carves them. This year for the first time, I have seen the supermarket trying to sell very small Halloween carving pineapples with the greens still attached - but I don't expect the cut pineapple would go to waste. I also don't think the pineapple will take off here long term.

[@christiegrows2022]

💯 to grow something with the expectation of wasting in these time is just unbelievable. We can still celebrate and have fun but people are missing the basic skill of how to use what they have.

[@elainecherrington9588]

Very interesting I had not thought about this aspect of pumpkin growing. Squash are wonderful to eat,so versatile 😊

[@riverfordorganicveg]

Aren't they just?

[@judithstringer8298]

I grow crown Prince squash on my allotment and they are by far the best tasting and storing squash.

[@riverfordorganicveg]

We love them for those reasons too - real veg superstars!

[@TillyFloss]

I'd wager people grow pumpkins because there's greater profit in them than growing squash. Money talks, sadly.

[@pamcorcoran4131]

I totally agree on beautiful, long-lasting squashes for eating, but we continue to include pumpkins. Baby Bear and Lady Godiva have marvelous, tasty, hull-less seeds. They keep quite well, and we cut them up throughout the winter - seeds for us, the rest for a fresh treat for our sheep and chickens. (Long, cold winters in the Upper Midwest, USA.)

[@anahidkassabian4471]

I never thought about this, but Guy is obviously right. We can easily paint on various squash for an autumnal display and then keep them until we're ready to eat them. Done and dusted.

[@OI-rs1bf]

I just think you should be more creative with how you use your pumpkins. It is strange to hear pumpkins being described as solely a decorative item. I could just be a cultural thing because in the North & South America it is used in soups, purées, baby food, pies, flans, breads, pastas, doughnuts, cakes, and cookies. Pumpkin seeds are roasted and eaten as snacks. There is even pumpkin picking season in parts of the US where the public takes trips to pumpkin farms and patches (which are usually paired with apple orchards and apple picking). Also, West Africans use pumpkin, including leaves and seeds in their soups such as Miyan Taushe and Egusi soups. There is a large West African community in the UK who might be interested in organic locally sourced pumpkins if it is marketed correctly. Side note: Pumpkin leaves and seeds are edible. Maybe look at recipes from South America, North America, Caribbean, India, and Africa to gain some insight. Pumpkin leaves and seeds can be used in soups, salads, butters, and oils. That said, pumpkins are really messy to cook with, but they are way more than decorative and can taste great if cooked correctly. I love both pumpkin and squash. Even though pumpkin may be tied to halloween, it has been used as a key staple food for centuries by indigenous cultures since it first emerge from Mexico. There are many interesting Mexican recipes such as Calabaza En Tacha and Papadzules. It is also used in Mexican moles, empanada, and tamales. The issue of food waste associated with pumpkins has nothing to do with them being useless. It has more to do with people not knowing how to prepare it. But at the end of the day, you must grow what you know how to cook. It is understandable to abandon using pumpkins as decorative item, but I don't understand leaving people with impression that pumpkins can only be used as a decorative item and therefore should be abandon. I think this is unsustainable thinking and it is just as harmful. It is ironic because whole pumpkins were eaten by indigenous people as part of the bounty of the land before their commercial modern use as halloween decorations. That fact should be presented to the public.

[@riverfordorganicveg]

It's about the variety of pumpkin grown commercially for Halloween - they are chosen for size and speed, not flavour. With so many varieties around, why not choose one with fantastic flavour, so that you can enjoy making all those recipes.

[@OI-rs1bf]

@@riverfordorganicveg I totally agree. I hope my point didn't get lost in my ramblings. I just saying to encourage people to stop using pumpkins as decorative items, they should be also introduced to edible varieties and the many ways to cook, eat, and enjoy it. If the right variety is selected, the whole plant (leaves, seed, and pulp) can be eaten. That said, people should only grow plants the know they can eat and enjoy. Thank you for the videos, they have been very interesting. Keep up the good work! Side note: If people insist on pumpkin decorating, encourage them to paint edible varieties with non-toxic/natural washable paint rather than using the varieties breed for carving. That way it they are picking a variety they can actually eat. You could have kids paint faces on the different shaped varieties so they can learn more about the plant.

[@mikemellor759]

Great video - interesting facts about storage + instant recipe - 🎉😊

[@riverfordorganicveg]

Thanks Mike great to hear the info is helpful.