Danish markets in everything (hail Coase 1972!)

“We had all worked in kitchens or supermarkets and seen how much food was thrown away, and we wanted to do something about it,” said Sophie Sales, a co-founder of “Rub og Stub”, which translates as “lock, stock, and barrel”.

Denmark is already home to an active community of “freegans”, people who eat discarded edible food to reduce waste.

But unlike activists, Rub og Stub won’t go rummaging through trash to find its ingredients, and the restaurant doesn’t accept food that’s been found through so-called “dumpster diving”.

Instead, they’re trying to get to the food before grocery stores and other retailers throw it out.

There is more information here, noting that the restaurant had to start out buying some food to sell, because no one believed them at first.  And there is this:

“If we get it on the last day before it expires, we can either put it in the freezer or use it on the same day,” she said.

Rub og Stub doesn’t accept food that’s already been prepared elsewhere, and because of its sourcing methods, the menu changes every day.

On Tuesday, it was serving meat patties known as “frikadeller”, with red cabbage.

The menu also included a vegetarian version of the traditional Danish dish, a pasta salad, and apple muffins with marzipan and nougat ice cream.

For the pointer I thank Ruy Lopez.