We all have times when we have an excess of something in the cupboard. A time when we have

• been tempted by a special offer and bought more than we can possibly eat
• the home produce has been bountiful and you are drowning in a peticular fruit or vegetable
• planned a special event, party or celebration and been left with a lot of uneaten food - in our case any time we have a BBQ and invited friends who all bring something to throw on the "barbie"!!

We have limited space in our freezer. in fact we reduced the size of our freezer in order to help stop us storing food that we never ate. Having limited freezer space at a time of abundance is only an issue for us if we need to store large quantities of perishables, like lots of sausages after a barbeque. For everything else we are learning more all the time about long term food storage. In the section titled "Surviving an abundance" you will find ideas and recipes to help you

• extend the raw life of your abundant food
• store food you cant eat today for use in the future.
• add variety to the way you cook your abundant food to make your every day meals more interesting.

If after you have made preserves, stored all you think you can eat and eaten all you can face for the next few months what can you do when you have an abundance? I find the best way to manage an abundance is simply to share it with others. It is not unheard of for us to have a gathering of close family, friends and neighbours the day after a party to eat up leftovers and help with the clearing up. When we have an abundant crop we try to distribute any we cant store, preserve or use around our family, friends, neighbours and collegues who are always greatful for our generosity. Here are some of the things I have observed others doing to share their spares;

• Home produce table at work - bring and share
• Home produce exchange at a local restaurant - bring in your fruit and veg in exchange for a food or drink voucher
• Honesty table outside their home - a table of home produce with either an honesty box for monetary donations or just a sign "Help yourself"
• Having a table at the local farmers or produce market, remember you may need to contact your local authority before you sell food,
  • if you want to support your favourite charity make it a fund raiser
  • if you have an allotment get together with others from the allotment siteto add volume and variety to the food on offer
• Donations maade to a charity or support group who cook food for the poor, homeless or needy
• A box of locally produced fruit and veg on sale at a village Post Office

If you have any addional ideas let me know and I will add them.