Businesses Invited to Food Waste Prevention and Rescue Forum on June 24

June 19, 2019 9:00 AM
by Erin Carr

Have you ever wondered what happens to edible food at the end of a restaurant’s night? According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, up to 10% of the purchased food ingredients are thrown away before they reach diners. Well, the City of Santa Monica is trying to change that by bringing together stakeholders across government, corporate, local business, and nonprofit sectors to discuss Santa Monica's food waste and strategies to help the City reach its zero waste goal by 2030.

 

The City is partnering with environmental non-profit Global Green to host a Food Waste Prevention and Rescue Forum:

Large-quantity Santa Monica-based food generators (e.g., restaurants, hotels, grocery stores, and hospitals) and non-profit organizations that accept food donations are encouraged to attend. The forum will feature breakout discussion sessions so attendees can share ideas and also educational content from representatives of agencies including the Los Angeles Food Policy Council, CalRecycle and the US Environmental Protection Agency. 

The forum is the first step in the City’s plan to create a pilot program that targets large-quantity food producers, such as restaurants, in its first phase. The City was awarded a $100,000 grant by California’s Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) in 2018 to develop a food rescue and recovery program. According to CalRecycle, every year up to 6,000 tons of food waste in Santa Monica is potentially edible and could be recovered and redistributed, and restaurants are the largest producers of food waste. Creating a pilot program for food recovery and donation is a huge step in helping the city achieve its zero waste by 2030 goal. Furthermore, the program also has a meaningful social impact by connecting food donors with the vulnerable populations who may benefit from receiving donated food.

Visit the event page at https://bit.ly/2wCq8YI to register. You can also contact Madisen Gittlin, Global Green, at mgittlin@globalgreen.org or call (310) 581-2700.

Authored By

Erin Carr
Project Support Assistant