As the coronavirus pandemic and economic crisis has left millions of kids at risk of facing hunger, we take a look at food waste.
It’s a huge problem in this country.
Amount of food wasted every year. Americans are throwing away about 133 billion pounds of food a year.
The good news is that there are public and private groups already tackling this problem.
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Food Rescue US brings fresh food that would otherwise have been thrown away by places like restaurants and grocers to low-income people in need.
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Major companies like Google have initiatives to buy “ugly produce” that would otherwise be wasted for their company cafeterias.
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Policy has been passed like the Emerson Good Samaritan Act to make it easier for food banks to accept produce and other perishable food.
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The Food Recovery Action Network helps students reduce food waste in their cafeterias and get that food to hungry people in need.
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Cities and states are in the mix too. Vermont has banned food waste from landfills. San Francisco picks up compost along with their other trash and recycling.
Are you feeling inspired? There are steps you can take. Want to reduce food waste in your kitchen?
The EPA has a guide that can help you get started on reducing waste at home.
https://www.epa.gov/recycle/reducing-wasted-food-home
Want to take action to encourage policy change and more? The National Resources Defense Council can help you get started.
By managing food sustainably and reducing waste, we can feed hungry people in our communities and conserve precious natural resources.
