The Martian's Food

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The Martian (2015) is an inspiring American science fiction movie directed by the genius Ridley Scott, starring the convincing Matt Damon. Adapted from Andy Weir’s novel, The Martian, and scripted by Drew Goddard, Matt Damon plays the role of an astronaut whose colleagues think is dead, consequently abandoning him on Mars, where he has to survive depending on very limited resources.

What urges me to refer to this film is how the protagonist dealt with the raw potatoes found in the spaceship debris, and how they had to be made sufficient to keep him alive until he returns to Earth. The protagonist counted the potatoes he found in three boxes; the first containing 81, the second 52, and the third 79. He then calculated the number of days he has ahead to return home, concluding that he has to chop the potatoes into small portions and consume only one daily so as to stay alive and focused, keeping his good thinking abilities functional in such exceptional situation.

This behavior stresses the significance of responsible consumption of food in the face of impending evanescence; we can give up our food consumption habits if we are obliged to. The Martian example is quite exaggerated; however, it still serves as a call to all human beings to consider responsible consumption for the sake of survival. Responsible consumption is a main pillar of healthy societies. It is not only confined to the consumption of food, but has also to do with resources such as water and electricity, as well as medication. Yet, responsible food consumption is at the top of the list due to the importance of food for survival.

American writer Caroline Kaufman published an article entitled 14 Smart Ways to Cut Food Waste on livestrong.com, on 14 April 2019, in which she provides advice about responsible consumption of food by family members. The advice includes estimating how much food each member needs, not preparing large quantities of food, and avoid cooking multiple recipes in each meal. Moreover, one should only buy moderate quantities of essential products, especially when it concerns fruits and vegetables because they are easily perishable. One should also select the food products that are affordable to the household, and investigate the possible alternatives in case a certain commodity becomes too expensive or difficult to obtain. Additionally, we should use our food scraps instead of simply throwing them away.

The optimal consumption of food aims at achieving responsible spending of money, saving food, and making it available for everybody. Responsible food consumption can be made possible through following a set of enlightened plans and procedures that aim to guide individuals to optimal consumption. These procedures include raising the society’s awareness about responsible food consumption, and the role it plays to address economic crises and food insufficiency in many developing countries.

Reference

livestrong.com/slideshow/1011347-14-smarter-ways-cut-down-food-waste/

*The original article was published in SCIplanet, Summer 2019 Issue.

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