Just outside a Washington, D.C. banquet where guests feasted like kings, a man begged for change to buy a sandwich. Blocks away, others waited for a shelter kitchen to open.
Summer brings parties, weddings, reunions, office picnics and conferences. An estimated 10 to 15 percent of catered food will be thrown out.
Why are valuable leftovers feeding landfills instead of the hungry? Catering managers say “fear of lawsuits.” However, the Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act, passed in 1996, protects those donating food responsibly from liability.
Donating instead of dumping good food helps the environment and economy too. Food leftovers are the largest component of waste in the U.S., according to the Environmental Protection Agency. We throw away more than 25 percent of our food — 96 billion pounds each year. Its disposal costs $1 billion annually — and food decomposing in landfills releases massive amounts of methane. Solutions? Avoid excess purchases, compost scraps, and donate edible leftovers to food banks and shelters.
At a Saturday open-air market in Silver Spring, Md., FreshFarm Markets coordinator Liz Falk told me member farmers gave produce to such area groups as DC Central Kitchen, which used 600,000 pounds of donated food in 2007, and Shepherd’s Table — my next stop.
As Thierry Musel prepared supper, I asked whether rising food prices are squeezing the Silver Spring facility, which serves 1,000 meals a week. “Very much so,” the kitchen manager said. Moreover, grocery stores’ improved stock management means less unsold food to give to charities. So donations of leftover food from social and business affairs are manna from heaven.
People want to help. This spring, event planners flocked to Arlington, Va., lawyer Tyra Hilliard’s seminar on the legal side of doing good. Among her recommendations:
» Choose menu items that are sustainably sourced and less prone to spoilage.
» Before the event, contact a local nonprofit that accepts food donations. Make pickup or delivery arrangements.
» Stipulate the donation of leftovers when negotiating with caterers and event venues. “Until you ask for it, facilities won’t do it,” Hilliard said.
» If your group is delivering the food, plan for prompt pack-up and transport.
This Easy Green move generates leftovers, too: good feelings that last long after the party’s over.
Robin Tierney is a freelancer who writes about health and environment issues. She can be reached at [email protected].
