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Welcome to our new series, One Good Thing to Do Today. It’s a guide to little things you can actually do in lockdown London that will provide bits of light in these dark times.
Ah, the famous veg box dilemma. You're buzzing about it the day it arrives and then two weeks later you're racked with guilt about the butternut squash that's rotting in the corner of your kitchen.
If that sounds #relatable then today's One Good Thing might be one for you. Our recommendation? Download Olio, a food sharing app that allows you to offload excess grub on your neighbours (before it gets to the mouldy, unusable stage, of course). All you have to do is put up a post about it and wait to see if you get any takers.
The app was first started in 2015 by a group of friends who'd noticed how much effort goes into growing and making food and how easy it is to end up throwing loads of leftovers away at the end of the week. It was originally launched as a closed WhatsApp group for 12 Crouch End residents. Now, nearly 10 million portions of food have been shared on there.
It's no wonder it's been popular. Sharing a post about the bit of sourdough or unused herbs you've got going spare gives you all the buzz of Instagramming a thirst trap with added eco clout. And it saves you a walk to the bin. And it gives you a reason to chat to someone outside of your household.
Plus, of course, as much as you can post about your spare bits on Olio. You can also claim surplus food off of other people: whether they're an over-eager baker from a nearby block of flats or a local grocery store that ordered too many carrots. A glorious circle of sustainable life!
Read more from our One Good Thing to Do Today series.