Even when there is no prohibition of bal tashḥit in throwing away leftover food, one must be careful not to disgrace it by actively destroying it, especially leftover bread. Therefore, if pieces of bread larger than an olive’s volume remain on the table at the end of a meal, one may not wash the table while they are still there, since wetting them ruins them and is considered destroying them (SA OḤ 180:3). Rather, the leftover bread should be wrapped and placed in the garbage respectfully.
If crumbs smaller than an olive’s volume remain after the meal, there is no prohibition against disposing of them, even disrespectfully. Nevertheless, the Sages said that it is proper not to disgrace them, but to gather them respectfully. One who throws crumbs onto the floor is, in effect, spurning the goodness that God has bestowed upon the world. Because he fails to recognize that goodness and to honor bread properly, Heaven withholds its blessing from him, until he is reduced to poverty. There is also a spiritual dimension to this. The Sages said that the angel appointed over food and livelihood is named Nakid, meaning “cleanliness,” while the angel appointed over poverty is named Naval, meaning “filth.” Therefore, where food crumbs are left on the floor, the angel of poverty dwells; but where there is cleanliness, the angel of wealth dwells (Pesaḥim 111b; Ḥullin 105b).
One should therefore be careful not to leave crumbs scattered on the floor, and not to sweep them from the table onto the floor. Rather, they should be gathered and thrown into the garbage or into water. Although throwing them into water will ruin them, since they are smaller than an olive’s volume, there is no prohibition against disposing of them. One must simply be careful not to disgrace them by throwing them onto the ground (SA OḤ 180:4; MB 10).
It is permitted, and to some extent even proper, to throw leftover bread into the yard so that birds can eat it. This applies only to a small amount of crumbs. If many pieces of bread remain, the birds are unlikely to eat them quickly, so leaving them outside would show greater disrespect to the bread and may also bother the neighbors. For the same reason, one certainly should not leave leftover bread on top of a public garbage bin. When there is a relatively large amount of leftover bread, it should be wrapped in a bag and placed in the garbage.
One who sees bread or another food in a place where people walk and it is being disgraced should, out of respect for the food, lift it onto a rock or place it at the side of the path, where it will not be stepped on (Eruvin 64b; Beit Barukh 45:31).
