March, April, May 2021 Volume 28 Number 1
COMPL
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Getting Food Where It Needs to Go
412 Food Rescue’s mission tackles both the hunger and climate crisis By Gina Mazza
The pandemic outbreak of 2020
brought into sharper focus an ongoing crisis in our country: food availability. Even though we live in one of the greatest food-producing nations on earth, one in eight people go hungry every day in the United States. COVID-19 has left millions without stable employment, leading to increased levels of food insecurity—as many as 50 million people, including 17 million children—nationwide. A local nonprofit organization is tackling this problem head on, while taking it a few crucial steps further by addressing the
environmental impact of wasted food. 412 Food Rescue, located in Pittsburgh, was founded in 2015 upon a powerful mission: to make the connection between food waste, hunger and ecological sustainability. “ We p r e v e n t p e r f e c t ly good food from entering the waste stream by redirecting it to populations who are experiencing food insecurity,” explains Sara Swaney, senior director of advancement. “According to the United Nations, if we recover all the food that is lost or wasted, we will have enough to feed all those who are hungry four times over. We are working towards that goal on a local level.”
412 Food Rescue achieves its vision by aligning with food retailers, wholesalers, restaurants, caterers and other sources to “rescue” food that is safe and healthy to eat but unsellable for a variety of reasons. (The majority is fresh produce, meat, dairy products and bread.) Other nonprofits—including churches, community centers, daycare centers, housing authorities and more—join in to help the food get to those who need it. Thousands of volunteer drivers, or “Food Rescue Heroes”, help to deliver the food to redistribution points and to those who may not have transportation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, drivers came to the aid of homebound seniors and other vulnerable community members by bringing healthy food delivered to their doorstep. Since March 2020, 412 Food Rescue has partnered with 18 Continued on page 4
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