Giving Thanks for the Boulder Food Project 2

Last year, as I was just starting out on my adventure into the world of inspiring organizations, I stumbled onto the Boulder Food Rescue. The founder, Hana Dansky, had done her own reconnaissance into our nation’s food cycle: we put “10 percent of our national energy budget, 50 percent of our land use, and 80 percent of our freshwater resources into food, truck it around the country, and then end up throwing away nearly 40 percent of everything we produce, much of which is still edible and healthy.” At the same time, there are hungry people everywhere.

Saying No to Waste

Hana is putting her body and soul into changing that.

• Rescuing from local grocery stores perfectly fresh unused food that is slated for the garbage heap
• Redistributing this food to people in need
• Hosting community meals where the wealthy and the poor, side by side, cook and eat together

Check out my archived November 24, 2015 blog entry for more detail on the basic mission.

What’s New from the Boulder Food Rescue?

The Boulder Food Rescue crew has been busy since my last look a year ago.

• In February, they produced the first-of-its kind food waste audit for the City of Boulder. The purpose is to identify the key factors that are contributing to food waste, including food donor fear of liability, a concern I’ve heard voiced over and over.
• This year they’ve upped the total food redirected away from landfills to a whopping 1, 509,506 pounds.
• They continue to sustain the environment by doing these heavyweight pickups and deliveries on bikes – 85% bike use, snow or shine!

Some other cool facts:

• The Boulder Food Rescue co-founder created a web application to efficiently track the cumbersome logistics of food rescue. The app is now being used in 13 cities.
• Ongoing research is underway that analyzes barriers and strategies to healthy food access for people facing food insecurity.

Inspired? Want to start your own food rescue? Check out this roadmap.

Happy Thanksgiving!

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