The Food Recovery Network has redirected 725,233 pounds of surplus food from college and university foodservice departments to the needy since three University of Maryland students founded the organization in September 2011. It now helps student groups recover and distribute edible leftovers from the kitchens at 128 higher-education institutions nationwide.
Here are four standout chapters, each having recovered more than 10,000 pounds each for distribution to community groups, according to FRN.
1.Brown University, Providence, R.I.
Since 2011, the FRN chapter at Brown University in Providence R.I., has partnered with dining services to recover 29,516 pounds of food. The group’s volunteers collect food from campus dining halls and deliver it to local homeless shelters and meal sites. The chapter is also affiliated with We Share Hope, a Providence based 501(c)3 that recovers 250,000 pounds of food each year.
2.Texas A&M, College Station, Texas
The Aggies’ FRN chapter has collected more than 20,933 pounds from Sbisa Dining Hall and on-campus branches of Panera Bread Co. and Einstein Bros Bagels. The food was donated to Twin City Misssin, a shelter in nearby Bryan, Texas.
3.Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, N.Y.
The 18,390 pounds of food saved by Recover Rochester, the FRN chapter at RIT, has gone to homeless shelters and soup kitchens. The chapter was founded by students Wai Hon Chan and Nicholas Newmann in December 2012.
4.Providence College, Providence, R.I.
Friar Food Rescue, the FRN chapter at Providence, has recovered more than 10,550 pounds of food from the Sodexo-managed facility since fall 2012, when students Dave O’Connor and Nick Canessa showed how leftovers could be safely packaged and delivered to two local charitable institutions. Included is Mary House, a food pantry.