When we think about food waste we often reflect on the food that goes in the trash can directly from our plates. As it turns out the food waste problem starts much further up the chain at the farm. Each year millions of tons of food go in the trash because these items are misshapen. Supermarkets simply won’t sell “ugly” produce.

A group in the UK called Feeding the 5,000 is bringing awareness to this issue. In November they hosted the first public free meal made entirely of misshapen ingredients. The end product was a delicious curry, with ingredients donated directly by local farmers.

Due to current regulations in the UK consumers can’t access these unsightly goods. However, Feeding the 5,000 hopes that this event will inspire the public. As one participant stated, “Children aren’t getting enough quality food and obesity is a major issue. If the government cannot afford to provide free school meals for everyone, then why not find a way to get all this healthy food that’s being wasted delivered to schools and help cut down the nation’s obesity rate? If all the food that’s here today was destined for landfill, something is seriously wrong with our society.”

The same policies and issues surrounding food exist in the U.S. as well. Across the country there are small efforts being made but at the end of the day we need a coordinated effort to make sure food resources are managed effectively. From the farm to preparation and finally disposal we need a comprehensive food waste management system.

It also raises a question about the role of gleaning in foodservice?   We know that 4-10% of all food purchased in foodservice becomes pre-consumer food waste, and there is a significant opportunity to divert this food to formal food rescue programs.   These efforts are not typically considered “gleaning” – they are organized, systematized food recovery efforts that are a great way to safely divert and re-use pre-consumer food waste to combat the on-going hunger problem.

But what about the massive amount of post-consumer food waste, perhaps 20%-25% of total food produced in foodservice?  Is anyone seeing any evidence of customers (e.g. students at colleges)  “gleaning” post-consumer food waste around a foodservice operation (in spite of the obvious and profound problems with sanitation, food safety and contamination)?

Gleaning would be a shocking concept in foodservice, but is it is coming?

The US Environmental Protection Agency lists “feeding hungry people” as the second highest strategy for handling food waste (one step below source reduction).  The EPA describes the challenge:

Each year, more than 36 million Americans, in communities across the country, are making difficult choices—seniors who are forced to choose between buying food or buying medicine; parents who might feed their children but not themselves; and working families who must make the difficult decision between paying their utilities or putting food on the table. (read more from the EPA on feeding hungry people)

So what can we do about this challenge?  A recent graduate of Stanford University, Tommy Tobin, has been raising the topic of food waste and hunger and suggesting we need to raise awareness among college students as an important step.  In a recent essay on the Hunger-UnderNutrition Blog he comments:

Inspiring students to have their hearts and hands follow their stomachs brings a new generation of anti-hunger advocates into the fold, channeling new voices and ideas into our work.  (read more from Tobin’s blog Engaging Students in the Fight Against Global hunger)

Indeed, there is a large opportunity to educate the next generation about this issue while they are still students.  By doing so, we can slowly change expectations and behaviors about food waste that pervade many aspects of society and lead to higher levels of waste than may be necessary.

What does this mean for a foodservice operator?  First, if you are working in college or university dining services, you have an opportunity – and a responsibility – to play an educational role with students, going beyond just feeding them.  If you don’t happen to be providing food in an educational setting, you can evaluate your own source reduction and food donation practices as a first step.  Once you are doing your best in those areas, think about how you could lend your professional expertise or setting to help educate students about stewarding our food system responsibly.

This Practice Can be Part of a Recycling Program, But Many Restrictions Apply.

Some refer to “waste” while others say “food residuals” “food surplus” “food scraps” or “organic waste.” The word choice often varies based on the relationship of the speaker to the food: for example, one chef might see overproduction and call it “food waste” while a food recovery organization might view the very same item and call it “edible surplus” worthy of “food recovery.”

Overall, “food waste” is the most general term and refers to: “any food substance, raw or cooked, which is discarded, or intended/required to be discarded. Food wastes are the organic residues generated by the handling, storage, sale, preparation, cooking, and serving of foods.”

Depending on how someone views this “food waste” they may upgrade or downgrade the terminology to reflect its value to them: it either becomes a valuable “residual” “surplus” or “source separated organic feedstock” or else it remains de-valued and labeled “waste” or “scrap” to be hauled away.

The takeaway: how someone describes the waste tells you a lot about whether they see it as a valuable resource (which it is!). If someone says “oh that’s just waste” they may not be appreciating the opportunity for savings and other beneficial uses.

Resources:

EPA Food Waste Site

This link will take you to the presentation for “ABC’s of Food Waste Management: Reduction and Diversion“:  http://www.leanpath.com/docs/LeanPath_NRA_ABCs_Food_Waste.pdf

This is the last of the three presentations.

1) Create a written “Food Review Policy” which will be implemented after every meal service. The key aspects of this policy include:

• Bringing all overproduced, unserved food to a central location for review immediately upon conclusion of service
• Ensuring the review is conducted by a culinarian who is fully trained on food safety and HACCP requirements.
• Sort the items and document correctly for HACCP
• Determine an expected use for each retained item
• Communicate the plan

2) Be creative (within safety constraints).  Redirecting extra prepared items might seem like a challenge, but we see breakthroughs all the time. For example, one of our clients has created a café station solely as a venue for secondary uses.  Each day a team reviews saved items and brainstorms ideas to reposition the products.

3) Donate What You Cannot Use. If there is no immediate avenue for a secondary use within the operation, you can donate to a local food rescue organization.  Visit the EPA food scraps site or Food Donation Connection to learn more.

4) Track the leftovers and target future waste prevention. Track the amount of food waste electronically or on paper and use this information to focus staff behavior and minimize future overproduction. Waste prevention is always the ultimate goal.

Most of us live or work in an area that has some sort of food bank, soup kitchen or food recovery service.  But are we using them?  Do they want the kind of food we have in surplus?  Do we even have enough food to donate?  Are we concerned about food safety and liability?  Click on the link “food donation” to get answers and learn more about what you can do in your area.  This link will answer your questions about:  tax benefits for donating, information about food safety and protection from liability, even the typical types of food donated.  There are also several links to help you find a food bank or recovery site in your area.

Imagine if all food operations in one small town donated all surplus food to their local food bank.  How much food would that be?  How many hungry would they feed?

Here’s an example:  Disney.  It’s a theme park but made to look like a small town with shops, restaurants and hotels.  This ‘small town’ is really making a difference in their food donation efforts.  The Disney Harvest Food Program collects food that has been prepared and not served, donating almost 50,000 pounds of edible food each month!

Let’s all work on source reduction and feeding hungry people.  We can make a huge impact with those two goals.

Sometimes it takes an example like this to help everyone get a grasp on the true volume of food waste.  A single item, filling up a familiar space…

Food Rescue: the practice of safely retrieving edible food that would otherwise go to waste and distributing it to those in need.

Why is this important? 90% of low-income households with at least one child under the age of 12 use food pantries and soup kitchens and also participate in the School Lunch Program.  At least 20% of America’s food goes to waste each year, with an estimated 130 pounds of food per person ending up in landfills, which is about $31 billion. But the real story is that roughly 49 million people could have been fed by those lost resources. (Source: USDA)

Consider participating in a food recovery program in your operation.  For more information, contact Food Donation Connection.