A disturbing amount of perfectly good products end up in landfills every year — sometimes they’re never even used.
The self-proclaimed Dumpster Dive King (@dumpsterdiveking) sifted through a pet store’s trash in a video, showing how it’s done along with the benefits of dumpster diving.
@dumpsterdiveking What pet stores you don’t want to know are in dumpsters!! Look for yourself and you will see 👀!! $1000s of pet food dollars wasted every week 🐕 🐈 🐹 🐦 #dumpsterdiving #dumpsterdiveking #aso #pet #cat #food ♬ Drill – Hazzle
The dumpster had metal dog bowls and 13 bags of unopened dog food, some that didn’t expire until 2025.
“It’s a sad dumpster,” the Dumpster Dive King said in the video.
The adjacent dumpster, for recyclables, is filled with bird, rabbit, and ferret food. A bag of ferret food alone costs $70.
“It’s endless. It’s never ending,” the gloved dumpster diver said, rightfully frustrated.
Unfortunately, this is not common business practice. Companies like Walmart and unidentified dollar stores have been caught doing the exact same thing. Even one bag of food represents a huge waste of resources, including water, packaging, and fuel.
Donating or selling things you no longer need or want is always a better option than throwing them in the trash. Our landfills emit a cocktail of toxic gases, including methane, which is responsible for more than 25% of warming temperatures, according to the UN Environment Programme.
Anything we can do to keep things out of our landfills will help prevent waste and cool our planet. If you’re not ready to dive into the dumpster, there are plenty of other ways to reduce food waste and get discounts at the same time.
Flashfood directs shoppers to grocery stores with surplus produce and foods that are about to expire. Imperfect Foods, now available in most US states, has discount produce and foods and delivers right to your door
Dumpster Dive King’s haul got a lot of attention with 113.5K likes. Many commenters cautioned to make sure the product is not recalled before using or donating it — a good rule of thumb for any dumpster dive. However, the Dumpster Dive King assured everyone in the comments that none of the food he found was recalled, as he always checks.
“This is ridiculous,” wrote one TikToker.
“Just show they have a 1000% markup otherwise they can’t afford to waste like this,” wrote another.
“When I was a manager for a large pet food chain, as long as the food was good, we’d put it right out of the dumpster and call our local rescues,” shared another person.
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