Last fall, Food Rescue Hero announced a
partnership with Reighard’s Food Donation
Connection to build a shared online platform.
No launch date has been announced yet, but
tech teams at both nonprofits are collaborating
to make volunteering easier nationwide and
even globally.
“That whole ‘last mile logistics’ issue” is a
challenge throughout the food recovery
industry, Reighard says.
Traditionally, many charities picked up donated
food themselves in fuel-inefficient trucks, he says.
Collaborating with drivers who are already on the
road is faster and more environmentally friendly.
Feeding America’s MealConnect app embraces
the same approach. It has used since 2014 for
pickups at chains like Walmart and Target. Those
scheduled pickups continue, but beginning
last summer, volunteers can also sign up to do
impromptu, smaller food rescues.
Once they’ve registered at MealConnect.org
or via the app, volunteers get a brief training
session at a food bank and are outfitted with a
small toolkit of food safety equipment.
Volunteers might be “between classes, or
maybe they’re retired, or they’re an Uber or Lyft
driver that wants to take a break from driving
people around,” says Justin Block, managing
director of MealConnect at Feeding America.
The group currently has 300 active volunteers,
he says.
Beth Weinman, associate professor of earth and
environmental sciences at Fresno State, says
reducing food waste isn’t enough; we also need
to produce less food.