Dr. Jane Rooney
VETERINARIAN AND FRIEND OF THE ENVIRONMENT
Jane skiing in Colorado
Dr. Jane Rooney is a veterinarian working out of the United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s (USDA-APHIS) One Health office in Fort Collins. “Being a vet is one of the best jobs you could ask for, especially working for the USDA,” Dr. Rooney says. “A lot of people assume that every vet spends their days at a small animal practice full of dogs and cats, but the possibilities in our profession are limitless.” In her work for the USDA, Dr. Rooney sees her role as part of a connected nexus of health professionals. “We work at the intersection of human, animal, and environmental wellness,” she notes. “A lot of my job involves working in the livestock sector, but you never know what call will come next.”
they understood that food was precious. ‘No, I won’t eat that’ was not a phrase that was uttered in our house growing up. It was okay not to like something, but we had to try it first.” Reducing food waste requires diligence during all parts of the food consumption process. Dr. Rooney begins this process with thorough planning, ensuring that she buys only the amount of food she can use. “I use an app called Paprika to help plan what I’m going to eat for the week,” she says. “I don’t go shopping until my meals are scheduled. That way, I know the end use for every product I purchase.” Of course, everyone buys a little too much from time to time. When that happens, Dr. Rooney will freeze leftovers, but she also recommends pickling or other methods of preservation. She also advises using your scraps productively. “I compost everything I can and recycle the rest. Over the years, I’ve watched my weekly trash pile dwindle down to almost nothing. It’s very gratifying to see progress.” Dr. Rooney has shared her passion for minimizing food waste with Ann, which has made our entire team think about what they throw out. In turn, Ann has helped Dr. Rooney plan to be financially secure when the time comes for her to retire. “When I saw Ann deliver a seminar, I was blown away by her knowledge of retirement concerns for federal workers,” Dr. Rooney says. “I’m in no hurry to retire, but Ann has made it so that when the time comes, I’ll be ready.” We are honored to serve wonderful federal employees like Dr. Rooney. If you want to learn more about the issue of food waste, we encourage you to check out the documentary “Wasted! The Story of Food Waste | SUPER LTD.”
Outside of work, Dr. Rooney is passionate about curbing food waste. It’s become something of a pet project for her, and she knows that personal responsibility can go a long way in reducing the amount of food we throw out. “In developed countries, up to 40 percent of food goes to waste,” she states. “I firmly believe that we can get that number a lot closer to zero. My goal is that none of the food I buy ends up in the landfill.” Dr. Rooney’s interest in not being wasteful comes in part from her parents, who grew up in Ireland and had to ration their food at certain points in their lives. “My parents lived through the war, so
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