Food Rescue
Long before we became a food pantry, we were rescuing food.
In 2007, witnessing the heartbreaking contrast between widespread hunger and massive food waste in New York City, Prabhuji asked his disciples to begin collecting unsold food from bakeries and supermarkets. What began as a small grassroots effort grew into a sustained mission to recover surplus food and deliver it to soup kitchens, local pantries, and individuals experiencing homelessness.
That commitment continues today.
Through partnerships with the Regional Food Bank in Latham and participation in the Retail Partner Agency Program, we regularly recover surplus food from the Regional Food Bank, Hannaford Supermarket in Cairo, NY, as well as from local farms and other generous donors. This food—often fresh and highly perishable—would otherwise be discarded despite being perfectly good.
The ministers of the Mission work throughout the week to collect, transport, sort, and safely store large quantities of food, ensuring it is redistributed quickly and responsibly to families in need.
Rescuing food is one of the most effective ways to fight hunger while protecting the environment. By redirecting surplus food from landfills to dinner tables, we honor both our neighbors and the sacred gifts of Mother Earth.
USA FOOD WASTE FACTS
60,000,000
60 million tons of food are being wasted every year in the United States. This is one third of the food that the country produces.
130 billion
If meals were to be made from the wasted food in the United States, it would be enough to prepare 130 billion meals.
x3
Food waste in the US has tripled itself in five decades, and it is now estimated to be 30-40% of the country’s entire food supply.
5kg
On a daily basis, each American discards on average 0.5kg (one pound) of food.
240,000,000
Over 240 Million Slices of Bread Are Chucked Away Every Year. Bread is the most wasted food in the USA, with 38% of the grain products being discarded. Just below it in the list stand milk, with more then 20% of the produced amount being poured away. and 5.8 million of discarded potatoes.
