Mottainai Kitchen

Wastecooking becomes Mottainai Kitchen in Japan
New cinema documentary about food waste

Mottainai Kitchen premiered in cinemas in Japan in 2020.
Since then, the film has been shown in over 80 theaters in Japan and at
international film festivals.

Website Mottainai Kitchen

Wastecooking is now brewing beer!

The first organic beer made from surplus bread.
Get wasted for a better world!

In 2018, inspired by an English recipe, we started brewing two types of waste beer in Vienna. Kornspitz and Semmel. Cheers!

The Second Season of Wastecooking Airs on ARTE in June 2017

The success story continues in five European countries. Daily from June 19-23 on ARTE. Explore Denmark, Great Britain, Italy, Greece and Romania with us.

Timeslots on ARTE
More Info

Wastecooking big in Japan, January 2017

David Groß goes on tour in Japan: Cinema release in
Tokyo, cooking events, discussions…
Info and dates:
http://unitedpeople.jp/wastecooking/
Facebookpage Wastecooking/Japan

Great!

Already 4 international awards for Wastecooking Cinema documentary and series won awards at film-festivals in Germany, France and the Czech Republic!
Recently, the Doku won the German environmental and sustainability film award.

For more information click here:
http://www.mischief-films.com/filme/wastecooking

„wastecooking transforms trash into delicious dishes“ Huffington Post

wastecooking is a movement aimed at protesting food waste with gusto. No moral finger-pointing, only joy of life. The initiator of wastecooking is David Groß, a trained chef, filmmaker and activist.

„The Heroes of the Garbage Dumpster“ Tiroler Tageszeitung

One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. This old proverb is something dumpster divers take very seriously. We take the garbage from our throwaway society and turn it into delicious meals, thereby turning consumerism on its head!

 

May 1, 2012:

wastecooking rose from the garbage heap and was born as an actionism-based art project.
We define ourselves as Artivismus and operate as a collective with the intention of stretching the boundaries of what is considered art, the political and activism.

Wastecooking has whipped up a five-part web series and regularly organizes cook-ins and performances in public spaces that serve up a critical stance on consumerism.
We cook in Salzburg, Vienna, Geneva and London, at film, music and art festivals and at museums.

Roll film: The soon-to-be cult web series wastecooking is simmering away!

September 2013:

At the Viennese art festival “Wienwoche” wastecooking opened Europe’s first free supermarket in Vienna, which provided food rescued from the garbage, as well as dumpster diving tours and free cooking classes. Individual responsibility is never a waste.

Hungry for more?
Take a look at the freshly made teaser for the TV series!

Summer 2014 – Spring 2015:

David Groß took wastecooking on a European tour.

His mission: Travel through 5 European countries in 5 weeks s and only cook up what others throw out or allow to go to waste. UDavid got some help along the way from friendly activist groups, chefs and scientists. The adventure was captured on film as a five-part television series and an evening-filling documentary film.

For the future one thing is certain:
Wastecooking will only be history whenever food waste ceases to exist!

The essence of the first few wild wastecooking years is captured in the short film Days in Trash, which celebrated its international premier in Geneva, Switzerland, in conjunction with the exhibition food.

Actionism has never tasted so good!
FM4

What is really rubbish is that so much food goes to waste. We rescue fresh food from dumpsters that can help restore our life force

 

A critical stance on consumerism that serves up delicious food for thought
Wiener Zeitung

National Leftovers Day:
12. Mai 2015

Wastecooking’s delicious protest of food waste. Without the moralistic finger-wagging, and always with a pinch of humor.

The protest was amazing! A heartfelt thank you to everyone who was there!
Photos from the protest

Proclamation

One third of all the food produced worldwide goes to waste.

In Austria, that comes to 157,000 tons of edible food that lands in the garbage every year. Wastecooking says: Put an end to food waste!

Leftovers in the pot, waste we want not!
Following in the footsteps of our brothers and sisters throughout the globe, we are proclaiming the first Austrian “Leftovers Day”! WWe will be celebrating this national day of wastecooking for the first time with a cook-in to protest consumerism: Wastecooking chefs of the world, unite!

Our three fundamental principles:

• Halting the overproduction of food
• Combating out-of-control consumerism
• Intelligently redistributing and cooking leftovers creatively

Allowing and decriminalizing container, dumpster and waste diving and prohibiting supermarkets from throwing away food!

Our objective in Austria:

The mandatory donation of unsellable food to civil society organizations!

In Belgium this legislative initiative has already been copied many times over. Throughout Wallonia, supermarkets are prohibited from throwing away edible food. Still-fresh food past its sell-by date must be donated to charity organizations. Supermarkets failing to comply face penalties, including the possible closing of their store.

Who were the wastecooking activists who witnessed the birth of a movement?

David Groß (founder)
Daniel Samer (cameraman)
Tobias Judmaier (chef)
Martin Hasenöhrl (filmmaker)
Christopher Eberle (Internet specialist)
Caecilia (musician)
Andreas Strauss (artist and architect wastecooking stove)

Others who helped us out to a large extent, thereby earning our particular gratitude:
Our web series crew!

First season, 5 episodes, 2015

Destinations: Austria, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France

Wastecooking goes on tour through Europe. We have found dedicated fellow activists in the Viennese production company Mischief Films.
David Groß, chef, filmmaker and activist, travels through five European countries eating only what other people call waste. Supporting him are wastecooking activists Daniel Samer and Martin Hasenöhrl.

Also accompanying him is his wastemobile, which only runs on used vegetable oil.
Here is a small taste of what’s in store.

Scroll Documentation:

“Haute Cuisine from the Dumpster”
Salzburger Nachrichten

“Road Trip Powered by Vegetable Oil”
Kleine Zeitung

Here’s the official press release to read up on.
Lots of in-depth information on all five episodes of the television series.

Download press release (PDF)

Wastecooking stove as work of art:

Who actually created that cool wastecooking stove accompanying David on his European journey?
His name is Andreas Strauss. The artist invented the model “soupermobil 3rd edition” and in close collaboration with us adapted it for our waste cooking adventure. This stove rocks!

Self-experiment: Can man live on waste alone?

According to the world food organization FAO one third of all the food produced around the world lands in the garbage. That’s so easy to say, but the issue really gets under my skin. My waste cooking tour is also a self-experiment. I hope to prove that it is possible to live on only what our consumer-driven society leaves by the wayside. Can I do it?
David Groß

The full-length feature film of the Wastecooking European tour was first broadcast on ORF (Austrian Broadcasting Corporation) in June 2015. The culinary road trip movie received 2015’s second-highest TV ratings in the documentary broadcasting slot.

Second season, 5 episodes, 2017

Daily from June 19-23 on ARTE. Explore: Denmark, Great Britain, Italy, Greece, Romania. Livestream available and Mediathek.

Broadcasting times

In its second season, Wastecooking sets out in search of the pioneers of this change, who grasp crises as a chance and develop sustainable recipes both for cooking and for life. In the first season of Wastecooking, we explained the concept of food waste and its causes as well as presenting solutions with regards to cooking with leftovers. In the second season, we now go one step further to focus on initiatives and approaches that do not just combat food waste but also prevent it from happening in the first place.

Wastecooking will continue to cook with what others discard, but will also be looking to the bigger picture in its second season. The series reveals how visionary farmers, academics, activities and chefs are already successfully working on changing the food system today. Our protagonists draw in the process on technical innovation and the traditional knowledge of their grandparents’ generation in equal measure.

Credits second season:
Idea/screenplay/presenter: David Groß
Director: Jakob Kubizek, Peter Sihorsch
Camera: Daniel Samer

More info
Download press release second season

In addition to the TV show, a Wastecooking documentary film was also made and celebrated its world premiere at the renowned IDFA film festival.
The cinema-documentary was shown on numerous film festivals on 5 continents. Both the film and the TV show have won numerous awards.

Wastecooking – Kochen was andere verschwenden (‘Cook What Others Waste’)
(AUT 2015, 80 min)
Concept, writer, presenter: David Gross
Director: Georg Misch
Camera: Daniel Samer
Production: Mischief Films

Awards:
Deauville Green Awards 2015 – Doc Silver Award
Cannes TV & Media Award 2015, Silver Dolphin
NaturVision 2016, Deutsche Umwelt- und Nachhaltigkeitsfilmpreis
Ekotopfilm 2016, Human Activity Success Stories

The wastecooking documentary “Make Food Not Waste” became a surprise cinema hit in Japan in 2017. In January 2017 the documentary celebrated its sold-out cinematic premier in Tokyo. Public interest and media response were overwhelming. Up to 100 screenings at various locations throughout Japan are planned through 2017.

The mastermind behind wastecooking, David Gross, traveled to Japan to personally present his film. He participated in countless discussions and cooking events. Japan is one of the nations that waste the most food. Interest in sustainable solutions is enormous.

 

Here are a number of video highlights from our performances:

 

wastecooking DVD
Caution: This is all about the web series, not the TV series!

The wastecooking webseries on DVD. Featuring all sorts of bonus material. A must for all current – and would-be – fans of haute waste cuisine.
Here’s how to order

Composer and singer Sigrid Likar performed at our live events as the “Waste Queen”. Learn more about her interesting art here!

What would wastecooking be without its allies? Here you will find a list of all our fellow activists, who supported us wherever possible throughout our European tour. Many of the initiatives listed here would certainly welcome new participants. Getting involved pays off. Do good and have a good time while you’re at it.

Peter Becker, wild herb chef
http://www.newtritionink.de

Mundraub: Free fruit for free citizens!
http://mundraub.org

Slow Food Youth Deutschland: Schnippeldisco and more!
http://slowfoodyouth.de

Wam Kat und seine Flaeming Kitchen, protest chef
http://www.wamkat.de

Youth Food Movement Netherlands
http://youthfoodmovement.nl

Disco Soupe, Youth Movement
http://discosoupe.org

ANDES, Social Markets and Collective Kitchens
http://www.epiceries-solidaires.org

Les Paniers de la Mer, Social Initiative
http://federationplm.blogspot.co.at

 

Sonia Ezgulian, clever leftover and waste cooking chef
http://www.lessardinesfilantes.fr/blog/sonia-ezgulian/

Foodsharing, share food, don’t waste it
https://foodsharing.de

Feeding the 5000, waste cooking international, world-wide campaign
http://feedbackglobal.org

„Cooking is a political act.
But we can’t all be Che Guevara. Some of us have to peel the potatoes!“
Wam Kat, cooking activist

Hard Facts

The food that we throw away in Europe alone would be enough to feed all of the world’s hungry twice over.
In Europe 90 million tons of edible food ends up in the garbage every year.
In Austria we throw away around 160.000 tons of food. That would be sufficient to feed a city the size of Salzburg.

“My first dumpster diving experience was the catalyst. Tons of fresh food in the garbage – that’s a sight I will never forget. Bananas, bread, yogurt, tomatoes: unbelievable!

Wastecooking won’t give up the fight for as long as fresh food continues to go to waste. The way not just to our hearts, but also toward shaping an awareness that is critical of our consumer driven society, goes through our stomachs.”
David Groß, wastecooking founder

Did you know that …

• In Europe three million tons of bread is thrown out every year, enough to feed all of Spain.
• ein Viertel des weltweiten Wasserverbrauchs für Nahrungsmittel verwendet wird, die später in den Müll wandern.
• One quarter of the world’s water consumption is used to grow food that ends up in the trash.
• 1.3 billion tons of food is produced unnecessarily every year. This is roughly equal to all of the food grown in sub-Saharan Africa.

(Source: Die Essensvernichter, Stefan Kreutzberger und Valentin Thurn)

We go diving in garbage dumpsters looking for gems to eat for dinner. We make the kitchen boy break out in a sweat and christen the entire thing our “Trash Cooking Show”. We are the hair in the soup of our consumer-driven society. The embodiment of protest against food waste!

wastecooking is health food with a dash of hot sauce, because activism is supposed to be fun too – as long as the portion sizes are right. We take trash and transform it into delicious menus, go hopping into garbage containers camera in hand and fry up waste in a pan. We take aim at our consumer-driven society and turn the concept of competitive thinking on its head.

Food is culture, and more than just a means to an end. We are trying to give our bodies what our minds need in order to look beyond our own noses.

We spit in the greasy soup of those who let food go to waste unnecessarily.

What does the future of nutrition look like?

What is the future of cooking?
The answer is very simple. At school, where the children are.
What children like to eat today will be on the menu tomorrow. Our experience has shown that schoolchildren immediately see food waste as the scandal it is and understand that wastecooking can be tons of fun.

That is why we are calling for
wastecooking to be made a mandatory subject in schools.

“The approach wastecooking chefs are taking to food is an excellent example to follow”
Der Standard

Iss mich!

wastecooking partner project:
In the spring of 2014 wastecooking team member Tobias Judmaier developed the first catering company that only serves up food that has been deemed unfit for sale.

To find out more about “Iss mich!”, click here.