Food waste and food rescue
The United States produces more than enough food to feed everyone, but it wastes millions of pounds of perfectly good food yearly while 44 million people in the country face hunger. To fix this problem, we need better solutions to reduce food waste.
Feeding America, the country’s largest food rescue organization, partners with food manufacturers, grocery stores, restaurants, and farmers to rescue food and deliver it to food banks.
What is food waste?
Food waste is safe; high-quality food is thrown away instead of eaten. Here are some common reasons food waste happens:
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People throw away uneaten food at home, stores, and restaurants.
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Farmers leave unharvested crops in fields due to low prices or overproduction.
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Problems occur during the transportation and manufacturing of food.
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Retailers reject food that doesn't meet appearance or color standards.
How much food goes to waste?
In the United States, people waste 80 million tons of food every year, which equals 149 billion meals. They throw away over $444 billion worth of food annually. Shockingly, they waste 38% of all the food in America.
80M tons of food go to waste each year.
38% of all food goes unsold or uneaten.
149B meals' worth of food goes to landfills.
46% of food waste comes from the food industry.
How we address food waste
We work with farmers, manufacturers, and retailers to stop commercial food waste at the source. Our most powerful weapon against food waste is food rescue. We collect high-quality food that would otherwise go to waste and distribute it to organizations fighting hunger.
Food Rescue
We keep high-quality food out of landfills. Last year, the Feeding America network and its partners rescued 4 billion pounds of groceries. That food went directly to meals for people facing hunger.
Food Waste Prevention
We identify food at risk of going to waste, offer rescued food to food banks, and safely ship the food to partners. We invest nearly $40 million to help local food banks address food waste.
Company Partnerships
Our free MealConnect app makes it easy for local businesses, such as grocery stores and food companies, to donate surplus food to food banks in their area. Since launching, MealConnect has kept 5.3 billion pounds of food out of landfills.
How you can help
Millions of pounds of perfectly good food go to waste daily in the United States. In contrast, millions of people experience food insecurity. Feeding America is working hard to change that, and you can help.
Prevent food waste at home
Prevent food waste at home, such as planning meals, storing food properly, and using food in clever ways.
Support food rescue efforts
Your financial support can help us rescue even more food from landfills. Your donation helps us store and transport food to food banks and meal programs in the Feeding America network.
Involve your company
If you work for a company that produces or sells food, there are many ways to get involved. We can help you connect with a local food bank and develop a food rescue program.