Learn about ‘Austerity January’ from Chelsea Zero Waste Coalition member

By Deanna Robbins

Chelsea Zero Waste Coalition member Deanna Robbins is a Chelsea mom of two daughters and president of Gateway Restoration. She enjoys cooking and helping the environment, hence her annual goal of ‘Austerity January.’

Her youngest daughter, Abby, a senior at Chelsea High School, gives her perspective on Austerity January at the end.

It all started back in 2016, when I determined that I might be a bit of a food hoarder.

I always knew I was a foodie, but certainly I could not be a hoarder. I was not a hoarder of other things – I had strict personal policies about giving away a shirt if I bought a shirt, for example.

But how was it that I would come home from Costco with a carload full of food, only to find there was no room to put away the items? Hmmm. There was also the little matter of expired food items.

It seemed I did have a problem. Generally, I abhor waste, so why was I allowing it in regard to food, and what was it teaching my children? 

That year, I announced to an unsuspecting family that January was not going to be a status quo January, but it was going to be “Austerity January.”

There would be no dining out. There would be no buying of lunches. There would be very minimal grocery shopping. Yep, we would be eating all the food in the house until freezers, fridges, and cupboards were bare. 

There were mixed responses at first, with low levels of concern. “Don’t worry – she will get busy and forget about it in a few days.” Or, “She loves food and cooking too much to keep this going.”

But, by Day 15, the whining and complaining started. The family had to get used to having weird meals, where we might have tuna fish sandwiches with cranberry sauce as a side, or lasagna with corn muffins.  We ran out of fresh fruit and vegetables.

But this initiative stuck. I liked how my freezer and fridge and cupboards started to get cleaned out. I liked how I felt about not wasting. I didn’t like how much expired food I threw away that first year. I vowed never to let that happen to me again. 

Four Austerity January’s have passed since then. It isn’t so bad anymore because at most we have one year’s worth of buildup. I think more about whether I actually need every weird ingredient for a recipe. When I see the freezer is getting full, I stop buying. Most of all, this exercise reminds me to be ever so grateful for the food we have, and increasingly thoughtful about what we really need. 

Abby’s thoughts on ‘Austerity January’:

“Dude, come on. Mom not buying groceries for a whole month? I give her a week, week and a half tops.”

This is what my sister assured me as we walked out of the kitchen after my mom introduced the idea of “Austerity January.” Achieving this new goal seemed nearly impossible in the beginning.

What about the fresh fruits and veggies I pack in my lunch? What about the eggs I fry up every morning? What about chips?! These thoughts whirled through my mind as the weeks slowly turned through that first January.

I’m sure when you first read what Austerity January entails, you were just as frightened as I was, but I am here to assure you that it isn’t as hard as it looks, and it comes with a massive reward.

Everything has a substitute: fresh fruit turns into dried fruit, chicken and vegetable stir fry turns into pasta and frozen meatballs, box cereal turns into oatmeal.

Cleaning out your cabinets may seem like a frustrating, flavorless task, but all you need is a little creativity, and a little willingness to enjoy some foods that may not always match together. The money you save and the food that doesn’t go to waste make it worth trying out Austerity January.

You’ll discover that this month-long journey is not so hard if you take it one bite at a time.