That's more than 90 billion potential meals lost in the United States alone, yet less than 4% of that food ends up being donated to communities. This represents more than $215 billion in food value wasted.
At the same time, 34 million Americans experience food insecurity annually. We're wasting more than double the amount of food needed to close the hunger gap. Sharing Excess is working hard to change that equation.
63% of food waste happens at the pre-consumer level of the supply chain. Donating food requires time, labor, transportation, and capacity that many food businesses don't have. For this reason, a lot of perfectly great food goes to waste instead of feeding our communities.
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Food can go to waste due to inefficient logistics, long transit times, and hold-ups like port delays, leading to spoilage and deterioration during transportation.
Many consumers opt against imperfect-looking produce, which can lead to food waste, as aesthetically unpleasing (but perfectly good) food stays on shelves until its bad.
All food can go bad in the race against time. Non standardized expiration dates and limited shelf life result in food being discarded even if it is still safe to consume.
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Overproduction and excess inventory can lead to food waste when there is a lack of demand or market fluctuations.
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Small stock rooms, limited storage facilities or improper temperature control can accelerate food spoilage and contribute to waste.
Insufficient workforce in agriculture and food processing industries hinders the timely harvesting, processing, and distribution of food, leading to wastage.
Source: Sharing Excess is built around the strategy of meeting food donors where they're at– making it as easy as possible to donate surplus food. We source food from retailers, wholesalers, distribution centers and farmers.
Transport: Transportation and logistics are at the heart of what we do. Along with our own personal fleet of vehicles, Sharing Excess works with third party providers to rescue and transport food all over the country
Distribute: We collaborate with local food banks, community organizations, and mutual aid efforts to efficiently distribute millions of pounds of surplus food throughout the nation. Making meaningful impact in our communities every single day.
Your donation goes a long way. $1 donated to Sharing Excess equals:
lbs. food delieverd
meals served
dollars in retail value
lbs. ghg reduced
