WasteWise Lane County Launches Commercial Food Waste Prevention Campaign in Springfield

WasteWise Lane County – part of the Lane County Waste Management Division – recently hired an Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) Climate Corps Fellow to kick off a new commercial food waste reduction effort in Springfield.

This initiative will be the county’s first dedicated outreach in Springfield to large food businesses to promote food donation and food scrap collection, and provide technical assistance.

Are you a food business in Springfield? Please complete Springfield Food Business Survey, the county’s brief and anonymous survey about food waste and waste handling within your business. And, free technical assistance to save your business money by reducing surplus food!

“Commercial food waste prevention is one of those issues that can truly enhance the ‘triple bottom line’ for food businesses, such as grocery stores and restaurants,” said Maya Buelow, WasteWise Lane County Waste Reduction Specialist.

“It’s good for business profits because food waste prevention can save organizations lots of money; it’s good for people because significant quantities of food can be diverted to community members in need; and it’s good for the planet because it can minimize food in landfills, helping to reduce greenhouse gases. A true win-win-win.”

– Maya Buelow, Waste Reduction Specialist, WasteWise Lane County

This fellowship, which will run until early August, will help Lane County measure commercial food waste in Springfield and better understand concerns or barriers that large food waste generators have when donating or composting their wasted food, Buelow said. This commercial outreach effort closely follows Sanipac’s policy, introduced last year, to accept food waste in residential yard waste bins in Springfield.

The newly hired EDF Climate Corps Fellow is Tatum Flowers, a graduate student at the University of South Florida. With her background in foodservice and food banking, she brings knowledge and passion for building bridges between food businesses and local food recovery organizations to reduce surplus food and feed people. Tatum will lead outreach efforts providing information, technical assistance, and site visits to interested organizations. Springfield food businesses can reach Tatum at foodwaste@lanecountyor.gov.

Fast Facts

• $149 billion worth of food in the U.S. never gets eaten or sold
• Restaurants can save roughly $8 for every $1 invested in food waste prevention

Contact: Maya Buelow, Lane County Waste Reduction Specialist, at 541-682-4339.

About WasteWise Lane County
WasteWise Lane County offers education, tools, and resources that residents, schools, and businesses can use to reduce waste, conserve resources and live more sustainably. Follow WasteWise Lane County on Facebook and Instagram.

About the Environmental Defense Fund Climate Corps
EDF Climate Corps is a unique summer fellowship program where EDF trains and matches top-tier graduate students with host companies and organizations to advance environmental and sustainability goals. Learn more here.