National Food Waste Prevention Week

Those of you who follow Manna Food Center’s Community Food Rescue  program know that every fall we uplift those engaged in food waste prevention, food recovery, and food security by co-hosting DMV Food Recovery Week, seven days of educational and fun activities. This year we broaden our reach by joining the national Food Waste Prevention Week (FWPW). The goal of this week, according to the FWPW organizers, is to “educate and inspire real cultural change around food waste in order to help families save money, reduce the negative impact of food waste on the environment, and address hunger in our communities.”

Manna Food Center’s Community Food Rescue, DC Food Recovery Working Group, and the Montgomery County Food Council are proud  partners of National Food Waste Prevention Week.

The event began in California, was adopted in Florida in 2020, and went national in 2021. This year more than 420 partners all over the US and a few other countries are expected to participate. The national planning team is led by the Food Conservation Alliance and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

Nationally, the week’s events will include daily quizzes that we will share on Manna’s social media sites. For K-12 students, you can enter the student art contest (submissions due April 22nd) with the theme, “How Does Reducing Food Waste Protect Our Planet?”

The event will offer free webinars from around the country, including one that Community Food Rescue will present called, “Erase the Doubt about Food Safety” You’ve probably heard the motto “when in doubt, throw it out,” and maybe that simple rhyme is guiding your decisions in the kitchen and leading to a lot of unnecessary food waste.

In this webinar, hosted by the Montgomery County Food Council and presented by Manna Food Center’s Community Food Rescue program, we’ll try to erase, or at least minimize, some of the doubt around whether a food is safe to eat.  Should you consume food from dented cans? How important is the date on that carton of eggs?  Being able to more confidently answer these timeless and important questions can help you save money and protect the environment. We’ll also provide tips on what to do with safe, but surplus, food. Join us on Tuesday, April 11^th at 1pm ET. Click HERE to register for this free webinar. 

Manna Food Center’s Community Food Rescue program presents this free webinar for everyone who prepares food and eats.

Tune in to hear from Latino Economic Development Center with tips on cutting food waste in local businesses, followed by a panel of 2022 Food Waste Innovation Grant winners discussing how their reductions in food waste have cut costs in both disposal fees and in food purchasing. This free webinar is presented by the DC Department of Small and Local Business Development. Click HERE to register for this free event.

Other national webinars offered during the week will include: Zero Food Waste at Large-scale Events, International Recipes Using Leftover Bread and Grains, Strategies for Reducing Food Waste in K-12 Schools, and Food Rescue 101 for Commercial Kitchens.

Many local jurisdictions across the country will have in-person events, including one here locally that we’re very excited about and invite all to attend.  Join the DC Food Recovery Working Group and taste Urban Garden Brewing’s (UGB) newest brew, which replaces grain with leftover bread from Ravenhook Bakehouse. RavenHook prides itself on selling fresh artisan breads and pastries and owner Chris Girardot donates his surplus bread every day, but there are times when there is even more to share. Urban Garden Brewing employs ancient African brewing traditions, which include using stale bread. This collaboration, a wonderful example of upcycling, was coordinated by Food Rescue US – DC, a nonprofit whose volunteers transport excess edible food to organizations that distribute it to folks in need. 

Urban Garden Brewing will be turning surplus bread into beer. Join the event to learn about upcycling.

This event will be hosted at Right Proper Brewing in Washington DC. Community non-profits, local businesses and government agencies will have information tables and offer demonstrations at the brewery so that attendees can learn about food waste prevention, food rescue, food upcycling, and composting. Click HERE to learn more and to register for this free event.

To join in Food Waste Prevention Week activities, visit Manna Food Center and the DC Food Recovery Working Group on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.