I have been vegan for a few years now and sustainability is one of the biggest reasons for that right next to animal welfare. However, I recently discovered freeganism as a way to oppose directly consuming altogether. In the US, roughly 30-40 percent of all food will just go to waste.. Not only does wasted food not only mean that the energy taken to grow and package that food goes in vain, but when that food reaches a landfill it becomes methane.. On one hand, I would like to be more mindful of this and ensure that less food goes to waste at social gatherings. I already thrift leather products to ensure that I get long lasting items and not have to rely on buying plastic leather imitations, while at the same time not funding the slaughter of an animal directly. Yet on another hand, I am still cautious as this is does involve endorsing the consumption of an animal product in a way that's much different than thrifting leather. Therefore, I would prefer to hold off.
Should I keep holding off or does this have merit?
Getting food from the dumpster doesn't have any downside when it comes to humans' treatment of animals. It actually has a little upside, since even vegan food production involves pest control. But I personally get grossed out when I accidentally eat an animal product, so I can't do it.
Also be careful with those because animal products go bad faster than a lot of other foods.