Students of Denison University in Ohio have started the first state chapter of Food Recovery Network, recovering surplus perishable food from campus dining halls and donating it to community organizations.
"We are excited to welcome Denison to the Food Recovery Network," Sara Gassman, director of member support at the Food Recovery Network, said in a statement. "As an existing food recovery program, Denison has valuable experience to offer to our other chapters, and we look forward to their contributions to our mission of fighting waste and feeding people."
Prior to the creation of the program at the university, students have regularly participates in food recovery programs.
The Homelessness and Hunger committee at Denison University had been recovering food from campus dining halls for three years.
As a part of the Food Recovery Network, about 20 students from the university participate in food recoveries around campus, picking up at least six meals per week. They then distribute the surplus food to five nonprofits including shelters and after-school programs in Newark and Buckeye Lake, Ohio.
However, this year another group of students decided that they wanted to expand their recovery effort. In a statement, Susie Kalinoski, advisor to the Homelessness and Hunger Committee, said students thought it would be "better to be part of a bigger group."
The Food Recovery Network includes 34 chapters on college and university campuses in 16 states and the District of Columbia.
Since its inception in 2011, their efforts have diverted more than 210,980 pounds of food from the landfill to hungry Americans - enough to feed 154 Americans three meals a day for an entire year, according to the Food Recovery network.
The Food Recovery Network started at the University of Maryland, College Park campus and quickly grew to include multiple campuses across the nation.
"We are one of the fastest growing student movements in the U.S.," Ben Simon, founder and executive director of the Food Recovery Network, said in a statement. "Five years from now we hope to be on 1,000 college campuses and to have donated 10 million pounds of food."
