Making a Difference: Reducing Food Waste in Schools and Helping the Hungry

[crystalscookingnow]

I was at school having lunch with my dd one day. At the end of the last lunch period, the lunch lady threw out the leftover food. The menu that day was hamburger, peas & some fruit. It made me cringe when I saw 40+ hamburgers being thrown into the trash. I then thought about how many different schools are in our town: early childhood center, primary, intermediate, middle & high schools. If each school threw 40 burgers away, that would be 200+ burgers.

Surely there is something that could be done with that food. I was thinking of something such as a hot meal service for the hungry, etc. I'm in a small town, but I know that there are people here that don't have enough to eat.

Where would I start to find out if a program like that could be started? Is that something that's even feasible to do?

This has just been sitting on my heart for a while & thought that I'd ask you ladies & gents for some input. Maybe it's not even worth it. I don't know. I just think that this would be a great cause. Either that, or maybe if I suggested something like this, the schools would take a closer look at what they're wasting.

What do you think?

 

[gothim0802]

Oh wow! This is very sad!! I will be praying something gets done. I have no clue where to begin but I wonder if our schools do it too!!??

 

[The_Kitchen_Guy]

It sucks, doesn't it?I fear that if you try to do something with the wasted food, you're going to run afoul of the Perpetually Offended, the ones who want to make sure that no good deed can be performed by anyone at any time, especially if it makes perfect sense.

 

[crystalscookingnow]

Yep, KG, that's kind of what I was thinking. More than likely, I wouldn't be a welcomed visitor in my childrens' schools anymore.

 

[Stephaniecafe]

When I was in Culinary School there was a huge amount of food left over all the time and we had a food bank come and pick up what was left on a regular basis. It was pretty cool! They took all the breads and a good deal of the produce. I am sure that in this great country there ought to be more proactive people who can stop the hunger. It is a real problem in a lot of places. I know it may take some looking into and some research, but go for it! I wish there where more people like you! Isn't PC a major contributor to food banks with it's Round up from the heart campaign (I think it's like 12million dollars--? Why not be part of the solution? American's Second Harvest- The Nations Food Bank Network would be a good resource to check out and if there isn't a food bank in your area, see what is needed to start one. It only takes one good person who cares to make a difference. Yes. You can make a difference! I know you can!

 

[chefann]

There's a charity here in the Detroit area called Forgotten Harvest that picks up prepared food from restaurants and distributes it to local soup kitchens and shelters. They also pick up past-prime produce (that's still good) from local grocery stores. I don't know what specifically they had to do do get established, but I do know there was red tape they had to deal with pertaining to the prepared food. They have a website at Forgotten Harvest.

 

[trps]

Think of all the kids in that school that don't qualify for free lunch but their parents don't send lunch money/ they spend it on something more important like beer and cigaretts. Then the poor kid gets PB sandwich if they are lucky to be at a school that gives that much free. Then they watch as the school throws that food away!

I know some places have the problem of sanitation and are not allowed to give away prepared food. Another sad thing because if I were hungry I would think eating what kids it would be fine with me.

 

[lacychef]

I think there are some regulations that a lot of food like that from schools & grocery stores can't be donated to another place. It's really sad. It was talked about on Oprah's show on freegans. (there was a thread about that) It's ridiculous how much we throw away in this country...I know I'm trying to do better myself.

 

[daniellemorgan]

I think there are some regulations that a lot of food like that from schools & grocery stores can't be donated to another place. It's really sad. It was talked about on Oprah's show on freegans. (there was a thread about that) It's ridiculous how much we throw away in this country...I know I'm trying to do better myself.

Just to add to what Lacey said, the reason there are so many regulations is because there is always that one person looking to make a quick buck! If someone were to get sick from the food they could easily sue the establishment. It's sick and terribly, but that's how a lot of people work today! :yuck: I do commend you on even thinking of trying to do something! :sing: There aren't enough people who even think about helping!

 

[Teresa Lynn]

Panera bread also donates to food banks at th end of the day
I'm sure its highly regulated

 

[Dayna]

Crystal

one of my best friends in elementary school asked the school to donate the food to local farms. His dad raised pigs. And I think for a while they did. A local shelter tried but too much red tape.

 

[jbachen]

I used to work at Dunkin' Donuts, and whenever we did the donut change-overs, any that were left went to a local food bank. But I am wondering if it depends on the food? It is more likely someone will get sick from an improperly kept hamburger than a donut or bread.

 

[crystalscookingnow]

I would really love to do something about this. I know that there is a food bank in the area, but it's an hour away. I don't think that would work well for transporting food. We do have a food pantry, but I'm not sure about that either.

This may be just a misguided idea. I'm not sure. I really feel like God is putting food on my heart for some reason & I'm trying to figure out why! This might also be the cause of my purchasing 60 tomato plants & a canner/pressure cooker on Saturday!

 

[dianevill]

Crystal, I commend you for what's in your heart and for trying to make a difference. The world needs more people like you!

Not that this will help feed the hungry, but what our school district has implemented to cut down on waste is a "pick your lunch" program. (This is for the elementary schools; I'm not sure about middle and high school.) When the children get to school in the morning, the first thing they do is make their lunch selection - hot lunch, the alternative hot lunch, and cold lunch. The numbers are tallied and sent to the one elementary school that does all the food prep (they in turn send the food to each school). They do not begin prepping the food until the numbers are in. The employees then prep only that amount necessary. The children cannot change their minds once they're in the lunch line (they each get a colored token they turn in when it's time for lunch, so the workers know what the children have chosen). Of course, there is still some waste due to children taking the main course but skipping some of the sides, but I remember reading in the paper a year or so ago that the amount of waste has been reduced drastically since they implemented the program 7 or 8 years ago. It has also kept prices reasonable.

Sorry - maybe all schools do this and I'm just not aware of it. I know when I was in school many moons ago no one asked about our lunch selections. We just grabbed our lunch or picked food from the hot lunch line.

Now that I'm typing this, I am intersted in learning what my kids' schools do with leftovers. I'm going to follow up and will let you know what I learn.

 

[crystalscookingnow]

Crystal, I commend you for what's in your heart and for trying to make a difference. The world needs more people like you!

Not that this will help feed the hungry, but what our school district has implemented to cut down on waste is a "pick your lunch" program. (This is for the elementary schools; I'm not sure about middle and high school.) When the children get to school in the morning, the first thing they do is make their lunch selection - hot lunch, the alternative hot lunch, and cold lunch. The numbers are tallied and sent to the one elementary school that does all the food prep (they in turn send the food to each school). They do not begin prepping the food until the numbers are in. The employees then prep only that amount necessary. The children cannot change their minds once they're in the lunch line (they each get a colored token they turn in when it's time for lunch, so the workers know what the children have chosen). Of course, there is still some waste due to children taking the main course but skipping some of the sides, but I remember reading in the paper a year or so ago that the amount of waste has been reduced drastically since they implemented the program 7 or 8 years ago. It has also kept prices reasonable.

Sorry - maybe all schools do this and I'm just not aware of it. I know when I was in school many moons ago no one asked about our lunch selections. We just grabbed our lunch or picked food from the hot lunch line.

Now that I'm typing this, I am intersted in learning what my kids' schools do with leftovers. I'm going to follow up and will let you know what I learn.

Our school does this too. So, maybe I'm just barking up the wrong tree here.

 

[Rebeccascabinet]

My boys' school does something similar to Diane's school. In the morning the kiddos and teachers pick whether they are having cold or hot lunch and the numbers are sent to the lunch room. They only make the exact number of hot lunches they have numbers for. It does minimize the waste. If you are a parent and want to eat hot lunch with your student you have to let them know ahead of time so they have enough made.
They have cheese, crackers and milk for the students that forget their lunch. Those are free.