FOOD RECOVERY 101: Food is a Terrible Thing to Waste


On Tuesday, September 16th over 100 people gathered at the Universities at Shady Grove (USG) to learn about Food Recovery. The event was organized by the Corporate Volunteer Council (CVC) of Montgomery County. Panelist included: Craig Muckle, Manager of Public Relations & Government Affairs at Safeway; Ben Simon, Founder & Executive Director of Food Recovery Network; Theresa Testoni, a Consumer Advocate; and the moderator was Jessica Weiss, Executive Director of growingSOUL.

Attendees learned how to engage with the food system through food recovery and composting, and why it is important for businesses to get involved with food recovery. It is estimated that Americans waste 40% of its food from farm to fork, an amount that could fill RFK Stadium. In Montgomery County alone over 78,000 people do not know where their next meal will come from. Creating a way for businesses in the county to donate wasted food is the ultimate goal. By 2020, Montgomery County hopes to reduce waste by 70%.

Those who attended were asked to donate fresh produce and/or peanut butter and in exchange were served a delicious lunch prepared by students enrolled in the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) Hospitality and Tourism Management Program at USG. This event was an extension of USG’s Campus Kitchens Project, which was originally founded in 2001 by DC Central Kitchen to empower student volunteers to fight hunger in their community. Each month, USG’s Campus Kitchen Project designs menus, cooks meals, organizes driving schedules, and delivers meals to the families participating in The Dwelling Place’s programs. In addition, the students create educational programs with themes of cooking, nutrition and overall healthy eating.

“We are so proud of the many ways our students in the UMES Hospitality and Tourism Management Program are applying their experiences to real-world challenges, such as food recovery,” said Dr. Stewart Edelstein, Executive Director of the Universities at Shady Grove. “We’re even more proud that they are tag-teaming with so many respected industry professionals to bring much-needed attention to the often overlooked, but growing issue of hunger in Montgomery County and, ultimately, helping to support many of our local families in need.”

For more information or to get involved please visit the following websites:

www.cvc-mc.org
www.communityfoodrescue.org
www.montgomeryserves.org