News Releases from Region 06
Save Money, Feed the Hungry, Fight Climate Change with EPAs Food Recovery Challenge
DALLAS - (Nov. 13, 2015) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) wants to help businesses, organizations, and families do their part to reduce the tens of millions of tons of food that Americans throw out every year. By participating in EPA's Food Recovery Challenge, any group can fight hunger and climate change by preventing and diverting wasted food in their operations.
Food Recovery Challenge participants assess their normal levels of food waste, set a goal for reducing that waste, and track their progress. Groups all across the country have benefited from participating in the challenge, including schools, grocery stores, entertainment venues and sports teams. These organizations have reduced their environmental footprint, donated leftover food to feed hungry people, and saved money by purchasing less.
Some examples of food recovery results include:
Earth Day Texas donated 1,000 unsold boxed salads to food banks and shelters in Dallas after this year's Earth Day event
Ortega National Parks implemented a food-bank donation program for expired sandwiches from its food services in New Mexico
Dillard University in Louisiana is going trayless in its dining facilities, which has been shown to reduce food waste by up to 30 percent.
The University of Arkansas, in addition to implementing trayless dining, also reduced over 1,000 pounds of food waste in one week through the Clean Plate outreach event.
In 2013 alone, Americans threw away over 37 million tons of food. Most of this went to landfills, where it decays and produces methane, a greenhouse gas with more than 21 times the global warming potential compared to carbon dioxide. Find out how your business, school, or organization can help at http://www2.epa.gov/sustainable-management-food/food-recovery-challenge-frc
In September, EPA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the nation's first goals to reduce wasted food. Find out more about the goal to cut America's food waste by half by 2030: http://1.usa.gov/1WgtJRA
Learn more about EPA's Sustainable Management of Food programs, including this week's Food Recovery Summit in Charleston, SC: http://www2.epa.gov/sustainable-management-food
Connect with EPA Region 6:
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eparegion6
On Twitter: https://twitter.com/EPAregion6
Activities in EPA Region 6: http://www2.epa.gov/aboutepa/epa-region-6-south-central