The idea of not wanting something to go to waste — mottainai — is a concept ingrained since childhood in many in Japan.
Leaving food in your bowl is one thing that would elicit a cry of "mottainai," but the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry estimates Japan tosses over 6 million tons of still-edible food a year.
That includes several thousands of tons of seafood discarded annually at places such as the Toyosu wholesale fish market, often for purely cosmetic reasons: produce is the wrong size, has scratches or is missing a tentacle.