Food rescue
Encyclopedia
Food rescue, also called food
recovery, is the practice of safely retrieving edible food that would otherwise go to waste, and distributing it to those in need.
The recovered food is edible, but often not saleable. Products that are at or past their “sell by” dates or are imperfect in any way – a bruised apple or day-old bread – are donated by grocery stores, food vendors, restaurants, and farmers markets. Other times, the food is unblemished, but restaurants may have made or ordered too much, or may have edible pieces of food (such as scraps of fish or meat) that are byproducts of process of preparing foods to cook and serve. In addition, food manufacturers may donate product that marginally fails quality control or that has become short-dated.
Americans waste more than 40% of the food produced for consumption, which comes at an annual cost of at least $100 billion. Meanwhile, more than one-tenth of Americans do not have enough to eat. Similar figures on wastage, shortage (and obesity) are found throughout the Western world.
Organisations that encourage food recovery, food rescue, sharing, gleaning
and similar waste-avoidance schemes come under the umbrella of food bank
s, food pantries or soup kitchens.
and, ultimately, landfill
s or other garbage disposal. Food recovered on farms is kept from being plowed under. On farms, the donations often must be harvested, or gleaned, by volunteers. The Society of St. Andrew
is one nonprofit organization that gleans fields with volunteers.
Businesses that participate receive tax benefits for their donations and are protected from liability lawsuits by the federal Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act
.
Nationwide, numerous food rescue organizations pick up and deliver food in refrigerated trucks. Most are members of Feeding America, formerly America's Second Harvest. Recipient agencies serve people of low and no income.
Founded in Indianapolis, Indiana, in November 2007, the independent nonprofit organization Food Rescue brings together more than 500 volunteers who donate approximately 90 minutes of their time, one night each month, to rescue unserved restaurant food that otherwise would have been discarded, and deliver it to their local food pantries for distribution to those in need. Since November 2007, Food Rescue has scheduled an estimated retail value of $1 million in food rescues annually around the country. The rapidly growing organization currently has chapters in Indianapolis, Greenwood, and Muncie, Indiana; Greenville, South Carolina; Charlotte, North Carolina; Ft. Worth, Texas; Minneapolis, Minnesota; St. Paul, Minnesota; Naples, New York; and Fredericksburg, Norfolk, and Reston, Virginia, and continually is expanding into other areas.
In North Carolina
, the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle has been rescuing food since 1989. As of 2007, the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle rescued more than 5 million pounds (2,300 tonnes) of food annually, and distributed that food to about 200 programs, including shelters, soup kitchens, pantries, and housing authority neighborhoods. Volunteers also prepare grocery bags of fresh fruits, vegetables and breads to deliver door-to-door to seniors on fixed incomes and low-income single parent households. Other nationally recognized food rescue organizations include, City Harvest
, D.C. Central Kitchen and Philabundance
.
Some food rescue organizations specialize in surplus produce, which is more difficult to distribute than many prepared foods due to its short shelf life. One such organization is Fair Foods, which has been distributing surplus produce to the Boston area since 1988, distributing over 6,000 pounds of fresh food daily. With a mission of keeping everyone in Boston full and healthy, Fair Foods distributes mixed bags of produce at over 20 sites in the Boston metro area.
The benefit of many such food rescue programs is they offer healthy food to those in need, but who may not meet the application requirements of state food-assistance programs. Many such programs also provide immediate emergency assistance, without having to wait through an application process. Food rescue organizations are not restricted by the cost or availability of food, as so much edible food is thrown out and free for the taking, so there is no reason to restrict eligibility. This organizational model often allows food rescues to provide nutritional assistance more quickly, flexibly, and accessibly than other types of hunger relief programs.
At the individual level, food recovery is practised by both freegans and by dumpster-diving.
Toronto, in operation since 1985.
In Australia, OzHarvest was launched in November 2004.
New Zealand's first food rescue organisation is Kaibosh. Operating in Wellington, it was founded in August, 2008.
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
recovery, is the practice of safely retrieving edible food that would otherwise go to waste, and distributing it to those in need.
The recovered food is edible, but often not saleable. Products that are at or past their “sell by” dates or are imperfect in any way – a bruised apple or day-old bread – are donated by grocery stores, food vendors, restaurants, and farmers markets. Other times, the food is unblemished, but restaurants may have made or ordered too much, or may have edible pieces of food (such as scraps of fish or meat) that are byproducts of process of preparing foods to cook and serve. In addition, food manufacturers may donate product that marginally fails quality control or that has become short-dated.
Americans waste more than 40% of the food produced for consumption, which comes at an annual cost of at least $100 billion. Meanwhile, more than one-tenth of Americans do not have enough to eat. Similar figures on wastage, shortage (and obesity) are found throughout the Western world.
Organisations that encourage food recovery, food rescue, sharing, gleaning
Gleaning
Gleaning is the act of collecting leftover crops from farmers' fields after they have been commercially harvested or on fields where it is not economically profitable to harvest...
and similar waste-avoidance schemes come under the umbrella of food bank
Food bank
A food bank or foodbank is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes mostly donated food to a wide variety of agencies that in turn feed the hungry. The largest sources of food are for-profit growers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers who in the normal course of business have...
s, food pantries or soup kitchens.
Details
In most cases, the rescued food is being saved from being thrown into a dumpsterDumpster
A dumpster is a large steel waste receptacle designed to be emptied into garbage trucks. The word is a genericized trademark of Dumpster, a American brand name for a type of mobile garbage bin...
and, ultimately, landfill
Landfill
A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
s or other garbage disposal. Food recovered on farms is kept from being plowed under. On farms, the donations often must be harvested, or gleaned, by volunteers. The Society of St. Andrew
Society of St. Andrew
The Society of St. Andrew is a grassroots, faith-based, hunger relief nonprofit working with all denominations to bridge the hunger gap between 96 billion pounds of food wasted every year in the United States and the nearly 40 million Americans who live in poverty...
is one nonprofit organization that gleans fields with volunteers.
Businesses that participate receive tax benefits for their donations and are protected from liability lawsuits by the federal Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act
Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act
The Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act was created to encourage food donation to nonprofits by minimizing liability, in accordance with the Model Good Samaritan Food Donation Act. Signed into law by President Bill Clinton, this law, named after Rep...
.
Nationwide, numerous food rescue organizations pick up and deliver food in refrigerated trucks. Most are members of Feeding America, formerly America's Second Harvest. Recipient agencies serve people of low and no income.
Founded in Indianapolis, Indiana, in November 2007, the independent nonprofit organization Food Rescue brings together more than 500 volunteers who donate approximately 90 minutes of their time, one night each month, to rescue unserved restaurant food that otherwise would have been discarded, and deliver it to their local food pantries for distribution to those in need. Since November 2007, Food Rescue has scheduled an estimated retail value of $1 million in food rescues annually around the country. The rapidly growing organization currently has chapters in Indianapolis, Greenwood, and Muncie, Indiana; Greenville, South Carolina; Charlotte, North Carolina; Ft. Worth, Texas; Minneapolis, Minnesota; St. Paul, Minnesota; Naples, New York; and Fredericksburg, Norfolk, and Reston, Virginia, and continually is expanding into other areas.
In North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle has been rescuing food since 1989. As of 2007, the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle rescued more than 5 million pounds (2,300 tonnes) of food annually, and distributed that food to about 200 programs, including shelters, soup kitchens, pantries, and housing authority neighborhoods. Volunteers also prepare grocery bags of fresh fruits, vegetables and breads to deliver door-to-door to seniors on fixed incomes and low-income single parent households. Other nationally recognized food rescue organizations include, City Harvest
City Harvest
City Harvest may refer to:*City Harvest, a Chicago Family Harvest Church ministry*City Harvest, a New York food rescue organization*City Harvest Church, Singapore*City Harvest Community Services Association...
, D.C. Central Kitchen and Philabundance
Philabundance
Philabundance is a non-profit food bank that serves the Philadelphia and Delaware Valley region of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the largest such organization in the region.-History:The organization was founded in 1984...
.
Some food rescue organizations specialize in surplus produce, which is more difficult to distribute than many prepared foods due to its short shelf life. One such organization is Fair Foods, which has been distributing surplus produce to the Boston area since 1988, distributing over 6,000 pounds of fresh food daily. With a mission of keeping everyone in Boston full and healthy, Fair Foods distributes mixed bags of produce at over 20 sites in the Boston metro area.
The benefit of many such food rescue programs is they offer healthy food to those in need, but who may not meet the application requirements of state food-assistance programs. Many such programs also provide immediate emergency assistance, without having to wait through an application process. Food rescue organizations are not restricted by the cost or availability of food, as so much edible food is thrown out and free for the taking, so there is no reason to restrict eligibility. This organizational model often allows food rescues to provide nutritional assistance more quickly, flexibly, and accessibly than other types of hunger relief programs.
At the individual level, food recovery is practised by both freegans and by dumpster-diving.
Outside the US
Food rescue charities outside the United States include Israel's Table to Table, as well as Canada's Second HarvestSecond Harvest
Second Harvest Toronto is a food rescue and redistribution charitable organization that strives to decrease hunger in the city of Toronto. The organization is based on the principle that fresh and prepared food should not be going to waste while in the same city people are hungry...
Toronto, in operation since 1985.
In Australia, OzHarvest was launched in November 2004.
New Zealand's first food rescue organisation is Kaibosh. Operating in Wellington, it was founded in August, 2008.