The Clallam County Waste Prevention Program’s Food Recovery initiative is here to help coordinate the safe donation of edible food. Recovering food that would otherwise go to waste can have multiple benefits like increasing local food security, saving costs to small businesses and preventing environmental impacts of unnecessary food waste. The Food Recovery program works to match food businesses with excess to receiving hunger relief agencies that can distribute edible surplus foods to those in need. We help create efficient and sustainable relationships, and problem-solve the logistics of safe collection.
Whether businesses have raw or packaged food items or already prepared foods, the Waste Prevention Program can help establish processes and protocols to safely cool, package and transport prepared, cooked or raw foods for donation without adding significant burden to the food businesses. We work closely with the Peninsula Food Coalition – an informal network of food banks and pantries, meal programs, and other service providers on the North Olympic Peninsula – to ensure recovered food gets to hungry community members and is distributed fairly and efficiently across Clallam County.
Why Donate Food for Recovery?
-
- Save business costs for small food enterprises
- Throwing away food is the most expensive and most resource-wasteful way to manage excess food.
- Food donations to nonprofit anti-hunger organizations may offer tax deductions.
- Provide fresh nutritious food for local residents
- 1 in 5 Clallam residents do not have consistent access to a secure source of food, with many of those most affected being children and seniors. Recovering food prevents waste and puts more food onto the plates of those in need.
- Protect the environment
- Land-filling food waste has huge environmental impacts including the generation of greenhouse gases that contribute to global climate change.
- Save business costs for small food enterprises
Donate with Confidence
State and federal Good Samaritan laws protect you or your business from liability when you donate food that you believe is safe and edible.
Food Recovery Fact Sheet
Clallam County Food Recovery Initiative Brochure
Ready to Donate?
Contact Benji Astrachan, Food Recovery Specialist (benji.astrachan@wsu.edu or 360-417-2000 ext. 2999), to get assistance creating a custom food recovery plan to match your business needs, and help tackle local food insecurity while preventing waste!
