Green Initiatives
Nearly 40% of the U.S. food supply ends up in the landfill each year—but food banks are leading the way on reducing food waste. Not only do we rescue and redistribute millions of pounds of edible food each year, we’ve taken further steps to limit our environmental impact and reduce waste.
SUPPORTING NEIGHBORS AND OUR PLANET:
- Rescuing millions of pounds of edible food from agriculture and industry that would otherwise be discarded.
- Food waste at our warehouses is diverted to local farmers to use for livestock feed. If the food can’t be used for feed, it is composted whenever possible.
- Recycling paper, plastic, aluminum and cardboard in both our Fairfield and Concord locations.
- Solar panels provide the majority of our power at our Concord warehouse.
- We’re continuing to transition more of our fleet to electric and hybrid vehicles.
Reducing food waste with the grocery Recovery Program
Since 1975 the Food Bank has rescued quality food from growers and grocery stores that would otherwise end up in landfills. This rescue program allows us to offer neighbors a greater variety of foods, all while making a positive environmental impact. The grocery recovery program now includes more than 150 retailers across Contra Costa and Solano Counties and rescues an average of 7.5 million pounds of food each year.
Powering our Warehouse with Solar Energy
Our 31,000 sq. ft. Concord warehouse includes a large area for refrigeration and freezer storage. Running the warehouse and refrigeration areas consumes a lot of electricity. Using solar energy to power our warehouse operations allows us to reduce our impact on the planet and stay resourceful by saving thousands of dollars in power bills.
