Amp Your Good and FRN Partner to Fight Hunger

Food Recovery Network is proud to partner with Amp Your Good (Amp) on a nationwide food drive designed to collect fruits and vegetables for hunger-fighting organizations.

Amp Your Good’s crowd-feeding platform enables groups in the United States and Canada to organize food drives designed to generate fresh produce donations — healthy fruits and vegetables. People donate by purchasing fruits and vegetables at Amp’s website. Amp then delivers fresh produce directly to the hunger organization supported by the drive after it’s over.

In this campaign, Food Recovery Network Goes Vegan to Fight Hunger, FRN has partnered with VegFund and A Well-Fed World to collect nutritious food to support Meeting Emergency Needs with Dignity, which operates 18 food pantries in Northern New Jersey. There are 15 FRN chapters participating who have raised 225 pounds during this campaign!

Read the whole press release here.

#GivingTuesday is back!

This year Food Recovery Network turned 5 years old! With each new year has come new chapters, sponsors, partners, and accomplishments. By diverting food away from landfills and to hungry Americans, our network of students and partners has made an impact that reverberates across the United States (44 of which have chapters in our network).

Throughout the month of November, FRN’s national team and chapters nationwide will take part in a cherished November tradition, a tradition where people come together to express gratitude and thanks. No not thanksgiving, the other great November tradition: #GivingTuesday!  

What is #GivingTuesday?

#GivingTuesday is a global day dedicated to giving back. Falling on November 29th this year, #GivingTuesday is a day to celebrate generosity after Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The generosity that occurs on this day is driven by the power of social media to unite and connect global networks.

What is FRN doing for #GivingTuesday?

This year’s #GivingTuesday campaign looks different from years before. While in previous years we encouraged every student-led chapter to host a fundraiser, this year we’re focusing on strengthening FRN National’s core resources.

FRN is calling on the network to raise $10,000. Our month-long fundraising campaign will start November 1st and last through the global day of giving, November 29th.

Why should YOU participate?

Our student network is growing at an unbelievable pace. Each year we receive applications from excited students hoping to join, and see our network expand. Since FRN’s founding in 2011, we’ve grown to more than 194 chapters in 44 states and recovered more than 1.5 million pounds of surplus food. That is 1.5 million pounds of food diverted away from landfills and donated to the people who need it most.

The beauty of FRN is the collaboration between diverse stakeholders. By bringing together students, hunger-fighting nonprofit partners, and food donors, FRN facilitates meaningful relationships and impactful work. The money raised through this campaign will strengthen and expand FRN’s capacity and impact even more. It will go towards keeping the national office open, continuing to provide fellowships for recent graduates to support students, organizing the National Food Recovery Dialogues annually, and spreading the word about our incredible movement on an even greater scale.

How can you participate?

Help us reach our goal of $10,000 raised by November 29th! Donate here.

If you would like to give a shout-out to a particular FRN chapter type the school name in the "Dedication" field during checkout. The three chapters with the most shout-outs will win funds toward their recovery materials or attending the National Food Recovery Dialogue in April.

Spread the word! Share this page with your network, and stay engaged with FRN’s Facebook and Twitter throughout the month as we keep our audience updated.

Remember: You don’t have to be a world leader or a billionaire to give back. #GivingTuesday is about ordinary people coming together doing extraordinary things.

Knox Students FRN raises awareness on campus

This feature, "Food Recovery Network raises waste awareness," was written by Elizabeth Clay. The post originally appeared on The Knox Student.

The best way to get students to stop wasting food is to show them exactly how much they are wasting. For the second year in a row, Food Recovery Network, a student organization whose goal is to rescue food waste, held the Weigh the Waste Campaign. This year, there have been several changes and improvements, including taking better stats and having more volunteers participating, to the Weigh the Waste campaign.

“It’s about raising awareness of food waste on campus, specifically post-consumer. So all of the food that we take onto our plates and don’t eat,” said Vice-President sophomore Meryl Davis. “It’s also supposed to show that we can do something about one of the issues on campus. I feel like there are a lot of problems that we feel like we can’t do much about, but this is something that’s in our hands.”

Though the organization is only in its third term at Knox, they have already done much to raise awareness about food waste, both on campus and in the community. Not only do they weigh the food thrown away in the caf during the campaign, they also donate food that would otherwise go to compost.

Though Knox has made strides in sustainability in the past few years, and has a composting machine, it is still best for that food to not be wasted in the first place. It is far more sustainable for those hundreds of pounds of food to help feed the community, rather than be turned into fertilizer.

“Monday through Friday, we rescue food from the CafŽ that hasn’t gone onto the line yet, so food that we haven’t seen, and that’s anywhere between 100-250 pounds of food daily. We pack it up and take it to our partners, which are the Galesburg Rescue Mission, Safe Harbor domestic violence shelter and Moon Tower subsidized housing apartments,” Davis said. The club has been doing this five days a week for three terms now, and has saved over 11,000 pounds of food in the last two terms.

In this year’s on-campus waste campaign, Executive Chef Jason Crouch asked them to record menus and see what is thrown away more often. This may or may not affect what kind of food Bon AppŽtit serves, but it will definitely help them gauge how much they should cook, so less food goes to waste.

This year, they collected over 300 pounds of food waste from students scraping their plates in the CafŽ.

“I think it’s probably about the same as last year, maybe a bit more,” said Davis. “The goal is not to guilt people, but to make them think about the fact that we have this excess of food that can be controlled.”

Last year, four members went to Maryland to the National Food Recovery Dialogue, and came back inspired to implement what they learned. To implement their findings, they had a more detailed record sheet and counted how many pounds were thrown away every half hour. They also made a push to get volunteers from outside the club and asked faculty and staff to help as well.

The only problem with this year’s campaign was the comment board, which eventually had to be taken down. Initially, they had a tally for students to discuss why they threw away their food, with reasons such as “I didn’t like the food,” “I took too much of the food” and “The food was really dry.” Other comments included wanting more halal options, hair being found in the food and that flies were a problem. Along with these comments, there were many inappropriate ones that didn’t even pertain to the food, which caused the board to be taken down.

After only one active year, the news of the program had already spread to many incoming freshmen. There has been much more positivity surrounding the campaign this year, as well as more things than just the weight of the waste being measured. Through their efforts, these students have saved thousands of pounds of food, to be repurposed as compost, or to be distributed in the greater community, and they don’t plan to stop any time soon.

Follow Knox College FRN on facebook.

Mac n’ Cheese on Wheels

It all started when I was reading the DailySkimm email I get every weekday morning. It was my spring semester during my sophomore year of college, and I was cleaning out my inbox. The DailySkimm is a quick-read email that gives a breakdown of the global news. As I got to the bottom of the email, I saw a small blurb describing an organization called Food Recovery Network. Curious, I clicked on the link and it brought me to their national website. After navigating through the site’s different tabs and content, something sparked inside me.

This was a cause primarily focused on recovering perishable food and bringing it to those in need. I was already in the mindset that wasting perfectly edible food was a huge taboo, and here was a non-profit organization whose mission was to fight food waste. I wondered to myself, Why doesn’t Marist College have a system like this on campus? What happened to all of the leftovers Sodexo has at the end of the day? Does that get thrown away too? I thought about all of those dishes and plates full of food on the dining rack in our school’s main dining hall, all about to be dumped in the trash. I closed my browser, and over the next few days, Food Recovery Network and its’ mission lingered in the back of my mind, and eventually I decided to take action.

Cold-calling wasn’t exactly my strong suit. The first step in bringing a Food Recovery Network chapter to Marist was to contact Food Recovery Network’s national headquarters about inquiring to begin the process. I reread my email several times, making sure everything was formal and I had zero grammatical errors. “To whom it may concern, hello, my name is Nicole Souza, and I am currently a junior…”. Once I read all the way down to my signature at the bottom of the message, I clicked send. Click. No going back now. Even though it only took Sara Ribakove, one of the FRN National Fellows that helped me through the whole process, 48 hours to respond back to me, it felt like weeks passed because I was waiting in anticipation. Reading her email, I could practically hear her enthusiastic voice.

“I’m SO excited to hear you want to start a chapter at Marist College!...”. She outlined the steps of what I had to go through to start my chapter: recruit a leadership team, find a partner agency, and get dining approval. It didn’t seem like a hefty process looking at the roadmap PDF for starting a Food Recovery Network chapter. But little did I know what I was getting myself into.

Spring 2015 was where a majority of the prep work occurred for gathering my leadership team, contacting Sodexo dining services and partner agencies, and prepping for recovery runs. Hannah Gingerich was another FRN National Fellow who helped me bring FRN to Marist, and both she and Sara helped me every step of the way, which I am very appreciative of. After the spring semester had passed, we were able to complete our first official recovery run during the fall 2015 semester. When we were preparing for our very first recovery run the night before, there was a constant red notification sign on my Facebook home page from my Food Recovery Network leadership team’s Facebook group message. I was all set up to drive my car, Sodexo Dining was ready for us to come at 5:00 pm tomorrow. Our leadership team would meet in front of the door leading to the back kitchen, and we would record the type and amount of food we would recover. I went to bed, hoping that all would go as planned tomorrow.

The next day, 4:30 pm rolled around, and I decided to head over to the back of the kitchen early. The leadership team all met up, and we cautiously entered the kitchen. A Sodexo worker walked by us, but then did a double take and paused. “Can I help you?” he asked. “Hi-ii,” I stuttered, stepping forward. “we’re the Food Recovery Network team, and we’re here to pick up the perishable food … the head chef told us you would have for us?” I tried not to show my nervousness, but it was palpable by my timid face expression and stuttering voice. The worker looked puzzled, and said he would be right back to check with someone. Suddenly, my heart started racing. Oh no, this can’t be happening. They didn’t know we were coming, I’ve made my team come here for nothing…

But then I was able to breathe once I saw the head chef, Anthony. “If you could just follow me to the back, please,” he amicably said. We headed to the back with him, and we saw that there was a cart loaded with wrapped food in aluminum plans. BBQ chicken, mac n’ cheese, and garlic bread; a hearty dinner. We weighed the food, then pushed the cart to the elevator to bring it out to my car. Outside, we loaded the food. I couldn’t stop from smiling. This is so cool! We’re actually doing this. I pulled out my phone. I looked towards a Sodexo worker that had come outside with us. “Uhh, would you mind taking a picture for us?” I asked. The worker smiled. “Sure!” Me, the Food Recovery Network team and the head chef all huddled together. “CHEESE!” We all had the biggest smiles on our faces.

It only took about ten minutes to drive to Dutchess Community Outreach. Once we arrived, we entered inside the building and found Margot. She was happily expecting us, and she grabbed a cart to help us bring in the food. I lifted the ten-pound aluminum tray of mac n’ cheese off the wheeling cart, catching a glimpse of the oozing, cheesy pasta as I placed the tray on the counter in the kitchen. I still remember that first tray I put on Dutchess’ kitchen counter because it was the first recovered food tray we officially delivered. After gathering the food onto the cart and unloading it, we were done.

That’s it. That’s it. As we walked back to my car, I exclaimed, “We did it guys … we … did it.”

“That was so quick!” the Vice President, piped in. “And it only took an hour!”

All of those hours, days, weeks, months, preparing for this one freakin’ hour! Bringing in 95 pounds of food that would otherwise gone to waste to people who were in need of a dinner took one hour. That’s when I felt it. That indescribable feeling that made you feel important, and that you were truly making a difference in someone’s life. And it only took one hour.

Although we continued completing recovery runs, we were not an official chartered club at Marist until early December. Hounding my Marist Foxmail account, I was sending multiple emails out each day trying to get Food Recovery Network a date to present to our Student Government so they could approve us as an official club. We were finally able to schedule a presentation date; my leadership team and I were excited to show our Student Government what Food Recovery Network stood for, and what our mission was.

On the day we presented, after all of the questions were asked, we had to step outside of the room so the board could have a final discussion. Standing next to the door, the team and I became restless and nervous. When the doors opened back up, we were ushered in and we were greeted with applause and a standing Student Government who were all smiling at us. On December 9, 2015, the Marist College Food Recovery Network became officially chartered. I cried when we took the group photo, all of us wearing our club’s T-shirts we ordered. From that moment on, I told myself that I would never give up on anything else in my life, but instead work harder to achieve my goals.

The next week, the leadership was able to recover another 70 pounds of pork, mashed potatoes, and green beans on their next recovery run to Dutchess Community Outreach in Poughkeepsie, NY. Again, it only took one hour. When I talked to Hannah, updating her on our club’s status at Marist as an official club, she told me just how proud she was of me for coming this far. It all didn’t really hit me until the day after. Food Recovery Network is now established on the Marist campus. We had officially joined the hunger and poverty fight, and our chapter has the capability of recovering over 100 pounds of food every week and bring it to those in need. We weren’t just making a difference; we were helping to change the world. Before, the Sodexo workers had no idea who I was. But now that our chapter carries out weekly recovery runs twice a week, the head chef Anthony and other main workers personally greet my leadership team and I every time we walk into the back kitchen to pick up the recovered food. Because of our Food Recovery Network’s work, now, the Sodexo workers hesitate when they are about to throw away perfectly good mac n’ cheese. That mac n’ cheese shouldn’t go in the garbage, it should go on wheels.

Follow Marist College FRN on Facebook and Instagram to stay up-to-date with their chapter. 

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Interested in blogging for Food Recovery Network? Send your submissions to programs@foodrecoverynetwork.org for the opportunity to be featured. 

From Regina's Desk: FRN Turns Five!

Food Recovery Network has reached an important milestone. This September, our organization that sparked a food-waste-fighting movement at colleges across the country, is turning five on September 21!

FRN is celebrating its fifth year of reducing food waste at the source while at the same time, feeding those in need. For five years, our growing number of chapters ensures perfectly good food, which is currently the largest item in our landfills, is diverted and given to those who need it.

When FRN was first established as a 501(c)3 nonprofit, we chose the word network very carefully. We wanted to inspire the image of thousands and thousands of connections happening every day among people who care about the sheer amount of food we waste, the devastating number of people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, and the impact of growing, harvesting, cooking and then throwing away food has on our environment.

You might have a founding story of establishing a chapter five years ago. You could be a dining manager on campus, a university professor or an employee at a hunger-fighting partner agency, who has worked closely with a chapter and has seen the students involved flourish as emerging leaders. Perhaps you’re a donor who has supported any one of the impact areas we address.

Many more of you are just becoming familiar with us and our work: perhaps you’re a student connecting to an existing FRN chapter on your college campus or a student who is working to establish a new chapter. Perhaps you’re a concerned neighbor frustrated about wasting food and seeking a solution. You are all part of our community and the ever-connected network.

We’re taking the whole YEAR to celebrate FRN and to celebrate those who’ve worked to recover 1.4 million pounds of food and counting. Whether you were connected to FRN at the very beginning, or were introduced even last week, we’re celebrating YOU and the combined voices across the country who are changing the dialogue from food waste, to food recovery. 

This year, be on the lookout for ways to connect to the celebration. Make sure to save our anniversary page on our website. We’ll host events across the country including FRN’s Week of Action September 19-24. During this week, our Regional Outreach Coordinators will be coordinating an online campaign using #WhyFoodRecovery to promote our mission and hosting regional meet-ups in their respective regions, and of course there will be cupcakes on the 21st. Most importantly, we want YOU to help us kick off a year of celebration by sharing your experiences with #FRN5Years.

We’re also collecting stories from across the network to publish throughout the year. If you have an FRN story you would like to share, please email us at info@foodrecoverynetwork.org!

Happy birthday, FRN!

P.S., September 2011 was a powerful month. Here is a short list of other events that occurred around the same time FRN became an established nonprofit!

• The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations report, "How to Feed the World in 2020" was released in 2011. The report noted that despite record cereal harvests conducted in 2008, more than 60 million new individuals reported having experienced malnourishment.
• The National Resource Defense Council was one year away from publishing their landmark paper, Wasted, detailing how approximately 40% of all food produced in the US is wasted.
• The EPA stated that 36 million tons of food was wasted throughout the entire year, with only 4% of that surplus being diverted from landfills.
• In Sept 2011, the UN cited "the lack of income opportunities for the poor and absence of effective social safety nets" as one of the primary causes of food insecurity.