2019 Speaker Series – Climate Solutions: Taking A Bite out of Food Waste
Over 150 people turned out for Earth Equity Advisors’ annual Speaker Series in November. This year, we drew inspiration from Project Drawdown, which names reducing food waste as one of the top three most impactful climate solutions. Earth Equity’s Founder & CEO, Peter Krull moderated a discussion with Katherine Miller, VP of Impact at the James Beard Foundation and Jonathan Bloom, author of American Wasteland.
We learned that the United States throws away nearly half of its food – and a lot of it is tossed before it even reaches a grocery store because it doesn’t look perfect. Another huge problem is unclear labeling. For example, “Best By” and “Sell By” do not indicate when a product is actually expected to expire (for more information, check out this New York Times blog). Americans throw away $165 Billion in wasted food each year, with as much as 40% of groceries thrown out.
Jonathan and Katherine also spoke about the importance of supporting community organizations that connect leftover food from events with those who need it. Food Connection, one of the event’s nonprofit partners, has delivered well over 215,000 fresh, gourmet meals to those in need in Western North Carolina. In addition to nonprofits tackling food waste, Katherine and Jonathan discussed the importance of local governments providing composting programs to keep spoiled food out of landfills.
If you love to cook and you’re looking for a fun way to combat food waste, James Beard Foundation has some tips on how to fall in love with leftovers.
Many thanks to our sponsors for supporting these important conversations!
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