MEDIA ADVISORY
April 7, 2017
San Diego Unified Launches New Food Recovery Program; Donating 7,000 Pounds of Food for Community Hunger Relief Efforts
New program offers an avenue for leftover food from the school meal program to be diverted from the landfill to local organizations facing food shortages
WHAT: Just in time for Earth Month, San Diego Unified is announcing the Love Food Not Waste San Diego Unified School District food recovery and rescue program. This pilot program offers an avenue for leftover food from the school meal program to be diverted from the landfill to hunger relief efforts. In the month of February 2017 the pilot program rescued more than 7,000 pounds of food, equating to more than 5,900 recovered meals. (YTD: 25,500 recovered meals)
The Love Food Not Waste Program is a partnership between San Diego Unified and Feeding San Diego. Feeding San Diego coordinates with additional local partners, such as the San Diego Rescue Mission and a number of smaller organizations who are given the opportunity to pick up food surplus from San Diego Unified school prep kitchens.
The new program has already had a positive impact on the community at the Troy Center for Supportive Learning. The Troy Center for Supportive Learning is a care facility for adults with chronic mental illness and disabling conditions, and the high quality meal donations they are now receiving through the SDUSD Love Food Not Waste program has allowed them to use their limited funds to attend to other pressing operational needs that they had not been able to previously address.
In addition to its efforts to reduce the amount of food waste going to landfills, San Diego Unified Food & Nutrition Services is also ramping up efforts to provide teachers and school staff with healthy celebration tips and nutrition education. New online resources for healthy celebrations, healthy fundraisers, and healthy rewards as well as free nutrition education curricula are now available on San Diego Unified's Food & Nutrition Service's website.
WHEN: Monday, April 10, 2017 11:30 a.m.
WHERE: Hoover High School, 4474 El Cajon Blvd, San Diego, CA 92115
SPEAKERS: Janet Whited, Recycling Specialist, San Diego Unified
Alicia Saake, Director of Operations, Feeding San Diego
Holly Tracy, Program Manager, Troy Center
VISUALS: Students and kitchen staff receiving surplus food items from surrounding schools, weighing and boxing the rescued food. Hunger relief organizations picking up the rescued food for use at their facilities.
**PLEASE CONFIRM MEDIA COVERAGE PRIOR TO EVENT DATE**
Media Contact: Isabella McNeil, San Diego Unified School District, 619-341-2343 Imcneil@Sandi.net<mailto:Imcneil@Sandi.net>
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