What we’ve learned from students this semester

Throughout this fall student leaders from across the U.S. have joined FRN’s network-wide calls, responded to our social media polls, and emailed us to let us know how their chapters are doing this semester. 

Through this outreach, we learned about some common challenges that are preventing chapters from resuming their food recovery programs, including:

• Difficulty reconnecting with dining services to recover food

• Volunteer capacity isn’t quite the same

• Partner agencies are no longer accepting prepared foods

If you haven’t already, fill out FRN’s End of Semester survey to share information about your chapter’s experience this semester! Your feedback helps FRN National plan our programs and provide the resources you need to activate.

How are chapters responding to the challenges they’re facing to recover surplus food?

70% of FRN chapters planned to recover surplus food this year, but since August only 18% of our chapters have reported food recovery data. Some of the challenges our network faces stem from temporary changes in the food recovery landscape due to the ongoing pandemic. 

In response, FRN Chapters are exploring how to further engage in alternative ways of impacting their communities until they can revive their food recovery programs, including: 

• Fundraising and/or volunteering with their partner agencies

• Developing new partnerships with off-campus food donors

• Joining research Power Hours with FRN and The Farmlink Project

• Joining conversations about the intersectionality of food waste and food insecurity 

We’ve also learned that a number of our chapters, including new chapters that joined our network this semester, are exploring how to establish on-campus food pantries to increase food access for college students. Additionally, some of our more seasoned chapters are learning how to set up and manage community fridges, which increase food access on a local level. We look forward to learning more about how our chapters are putting these structures in place and what resources might benefit the network to expand these models over time.

Resources to activate your chapter

FRN National is delighted to support our student leaders as they activate their chapters in new ways. Is your chapter seeking ideas on how to stay engaged? Check out these helpful resources, tools, and tips:

• Fundraising for your partner agency

• Working with food donors off-campus

• Join a Power Hour with FRN and The Farmlink Project

• How to get involved in food policy

• How to address community disinvestment

• How to recruit volunteers and keep them coming back

If your chapter has helped to set up an on-campus food pantry, we’d love to hear more about your experience. Email us at programs@foodreccoverynetwork.org or DM us on social media to set up a call! Your feedback will help us support other students in the network who are interested in doing the same.

Teamwork makes the Dreamwork: FRN and our Hunger-Fighting Partners

Each day, the approximate 300 hunger-fighting nonprofit organizations in our network serve people experiencing homelessness, children and youth, unemployed or underemployed individuals, older adults, veterans, people with disabilities, immigrants, and other under-resourced groups experiencing hunger. 

These hunger-fighting nonprofits receive food donated through FRN student-led chapters and food business partners and serve it to community members experiencing hunger, free of charge. Last year, FRN donated 1 million meals to these organizations to help feed the 42 million people experiencing hunger in the U.S. 

As pillars of support for communities, as well as a backbone of FRN programs, these partners are vital to the success and impact of our work to end hunger, every day.

In celebration and support of these organizations, last month FRN’s collective network raised $6,351 for our hunger-fighting partners! These funds will support the organizations on the frontlines of the food access movement as they continue to serve and support families and individuals experiencing hunger this holiday season and beyond. 

Additionally, this year we launched our first-ever hunger-fighting partner agency bi-annual newsletter. This newsletter is packed with funding opportunities as well as resources and learning opportunities available to inspire and support our partners’ hunger-fighting efforts. 

If you are a hunger-fighting organization seeking food donations, please contact our team at programs@foodrecoverynetwork.org and we would be happy to assist you. 

Four simple steps to working with food donors off-campus

Has your chapter thought about working with a food donor off-campus? Whether you're unable to recover surplus food on campus or you just want to increase your chapter’s impact, we’re thrilled to help you approach food businesses in your community to create longstanding partnerships. Below are some great resources to help you get started!

Webinar Recording

In this recorded webinar, FRN National and current student chapter leaders explain how to initiate relationships with food businesses outside of campus dining, and what you can do to maintain these partnerships over time. As you’ll hear in the webinar, you are just four steps away from working with new food donors! 

Food Recovery Guide 

Over the years, we’ve spoken with many students in our network about their partnerships with dining service providers and off-campus food donors. The key learnings and advice from fellow FRNds helped inform this thorough guide to help your chapter establish a food recovery program. There’s a lot to review, but the document is easy to navigate using the Table of Contents to find the information you need. It’s a great tool to help you start a food recovery program for the first time, or to refer back to when forming new relationships with food donors and partner agencies.

As always, if you have any questions about the material covered or if you’re experiencing specific challenges with food recovery please schedule a call with our team, text (240) 615-8813, or email us at programs@foodreccoverynetwork.org.

Looking for more resources from FRN National? 

Check out these additional blog posts and visit our student resources webpage for more tools to support your chapter with food recovery, advocacy, and/or community engagement. 

• Free Food Handler Certification for FRN Members

• Tips for Volunteer Recruitment and Retention

• Play it Back: Key Takeaways from “Ask SAAB” IG Live Series

Free Food Handler Certification for FRN Members

About the Opportunity

Thanks to our wonderful partners at Always Food Safe, FRN chapter members can take a professionally recognized Food Handler course FOR FREE! 

This is a virtual and interactive training, which can be completed on your schedule. Upon completion of the course, you'll receive a certificate to add as a special skill on a resume or to share with future food donors.

Take the Course

To get started, use this helpful guide from Always Food Safe to walk step-by-step through the process to create an account and access the course. As an FRN member, you may receive this training free of charge. Email FRN National for the code to access the course.

Receive a Certificate

When you complete the course, you’ll receive a certificate to show that you are recognized as a certified Food Handler by Always Food Safe, an ANSI accredited e-learning provider for the foodservice sectors.

We are delighted to present this certification, in addition to FRN’s food safety training, to expand your knowledge and expertise in food safety and handling.

Additional Resources

Looking for more resources from FRN National? Check out our blogs on Volunteer Recruitment and Retention and Problem Solving During Food Recoveries. You can also click below to access additional student resources provided by FRN National.

Play it back: Key Takeaways from "Ask SAAB" IG Live series

Last week, FRN’s Student and Alumni Advisory Board (SAAB) hosted a series of Instagram Lives to share their experiences, key learnings, challenges and successes, and more. In case you missed it, here were the key takeaways that I, Cassie, Manager of Stakeholder Engagement here at FRN National, gathered from these fruitful conversations.

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Spill the Beans: Problem Solving During Food Recoveries

Speakers: Alexi Butts, Conner McKinzie, and Salil Uttarwar

• Communication is key when it comes to having a successful food recovery. Make sure to have regular, consistent communication with your food donors, partner agencies, and volunteers to ensure all are aligned on roles and responsibilities, timing, and expectations.

• Backup plans are your best friend. Whether it be working with multiple partner agencies that can accept your recovered food, branching out to work with off-campus food donors for more food recovery opportunities, or having on-call alternate volunteers, backup plans are the way to go.

• Bring it back to the “why”. Our mission is to fight food waste and feed people — remind your volunteers at the start of food recoveries, share it with dining staff, shout it from the rooftops if you have to! You and your chapter are making an impact in your community and on our planet, and that is what matters most. And hey, you/your peers might like this work more than you ever could have imagined.

I Can’t Believe We Did That! Starting an FRN Chapter during COVID

Speakers: Caroline Powell and Dheeraj Bandaru

• FRN does more than just food recovery. We raise education and awareness on key issues of hunger and sustainability. We advocate for legislation that supports our efforts to mitigate climate change and end hunger. There are many ways to get involved beyond recovering and donating surplus food. 

• Having a network of peers and partners committed to this work helps… A LOT. We have resources to support our network of student leaders, we hold regular chapter calls and conversations to encourage one another in this work, and we are here to support you and your efforts to help your local community.

• Repeat after me: people power, People Power, PEOPLE POWER. Now, more than ever, people are committed to addressing the imminent effects of climate change and ensuring all people have access to healthy, nutritious food. Seek out like minded people to help you on your journey to starting a chapter, mitigating waste, and routing food to communities in need. (And don’t forget to thank those people along the way!) 

Beyond the Campus: Create Lasting Community Relationships

Speakers: Shewa Shwani and Christine Rock

• Ask how else you can support your partners. Maybe your partner agency is in need of clothing donations, or volunteering, or fundraising. Ask how you and your chapter can support their efforts in the community beyond recovered food donations. And work to continue these efforts in your own community post-graduation. 

• Play that back again: Communication is key. Have regular conversations and roundtable discussions with your key partners (food donors, partner agencies, volunteers, etc) to ensure all are aligned on the goals of the partnership and are actively working to support such goals. 

• Participating in FRN may be teaching you more about the working world than you realize. Collaborating and leading a team, problem solving, project management, logistics, the list goes on. In working with FRN, you will gather valuable skills that can support you throughout your time in college and beyond. Make sure to first pat yourself on the back for those skills and lessons learned, and then add it to your resume

What a wealth of knowledge these leaders have! If you are interested to learn more about SAAB and ways to get more involved with FRN on the national level, contact our team at saab@foodrecoverynetwork.org.