Food for Life: doing good for people and the planet

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Food waste accounts for 25% of all greenhouse gas emissions. Yes, you read that right; a quarter of all the emissions that need to come down to keep climate change manageable are caused by wasting food.

But don’t guilt-trip yourself about that salad that wilted because you went out to dinner last night, and so it had to go into the green bin. Most of the food waste causing those greenhouse gas emissions is not at the household level.

The planting, raising, harvesting, preparation, packing and transporting of food creates emissions at every level of the food supply chain. Farmers, wholesalers, transporters (by plane, ship, train or truck), retailers, restaurants and caterers account for the bulk of food waste and the emissions it creates.

"Mismatching supply and demand is one challenge that results in waste, but so is the rejection of cosmetically imperfect food that is perfectly edible—what I call ‘perfectly imperfect’," says Graham Hill, Executive Director of United Way agency Food for Life.

"With so many families choosing between food and essential life expenses like rent, reclaiming good surplus and cosmetically rejected food to where it can make a difference just makes sense.  It helps our neighbours while cutting emissions that accelerate climate change."

Food for Life started with the rescue of a single loaf of bread in 1995 and is now the largest food support charity in Halton and Hamilton, focusing on rescuing and sharing good surplus food.  

Proud to be a United Way agency, Food for Life was, in Graham’s words, "born and raised on Kerr Street" The founder, George Bagaco, spotted the need among street people and the Kerr St. Mission and the supply in local restaurant waste, and set up the initial program.

Things really got underway when the Rotary Club and community leaders got involved, and now more than 5 million pounds of good surplus food is rescued and put to good use, ensuring everyone has access to healthy food. 140 unique programmes across the Halton Region and Hamilton, including 22 food fridges, in libraries and other convenient locations, match collected food with those in need. Food for Life evolved from a movement to a substantial organization.

The need has gone up by more than 30% since the pandemic began. 

"The need has gone up by more than 30% since the pandemic began," says Graham, "and we project we will rescue and divert more than 6 million pounds of good surplus food in 2022."

According to Graham, Oakville faces mostly transitional poverty; people caught between jobs or new arrivals trying to get on their feet, as well as seniors. In other parts of Halton, poverty can be more entrenched and intergenerational.

"You cannot predict who will need our help, even it is very temporary. Only recently, a lady pulled up in a Mercedes with a fur coat. Your first impulse is to think she must have other options. It turned out that she was fleeing abuse, she and her children were sleeping in the car, and she had no access to money in the spousal relationship. The food we provided helped give her the space to extricate herself and start fresh." 

Graham also underlines that where there is hunger, there can be other issues, like spousal abuse, as in this case, mental health issues, isolation, or substance abuse.

The relationship with the United Way makes it possible to cross-refer to trusted agencies providing a continuum of support and helping create a healthy community.

As a charity, Food for Life relies on donations for its operation along with funding from the Halton Region Community Investment Fund, the United Way, the Sprott Foundation, Oakville Community Foundation and caring individuals and companies. The biggest overhead costs are related to people and processes.  Supporting a fleet of 8 refrigerated vehicles and staff to enable the rescue and sharing of good perishable food is an investment that has a real impact.

"United Way invests in us because of our power to leverage," notes Graham.

Food for Life records indicate 3200 households in Halton take advantage of its food.

"At the retail level, the food we deliver is worth $15 million a year, and we do that with $2 million in funding, which pays for 20 staff who organize the work of 620 regular volunteers. That leverages the work of thousands of volunteers at the caring companies who support us."

Visit Food for Life to learn how you can help.

A certified living wage employer, Food for Life inspires its suppliers and contractors to do the same.

"One of our key suppliers is a carbon-neutral food producer," enthuses Graham. "There is real momentum to reduce the impact of food production and transportation, and rescuing food has immediate, measurable results in helping people and the planet at the same time."

Of the food rescued by Food for Life, as much as 10 per cent each day can be deemed inedible and would have gone to a landfill in the past. Today, it has been reduced to 2 per cent.

Their innovative onsite composting and partnership with Halton region, supported by volunteers who like to get their hands a bit mucky, divert most inedible food waste into their compost program or give it to local farmers for livestock feed. This means that packaging, wrap and other materials like elastics and twist ties are removed and put into the proper waste channels.

Innovation doesn’t stop at Food for Life. United Way’s social innovator program has helped Food for Life think outside the box, generating the “Good Soup project,” providing nutritious prepared soups from rescued ingredients that are challenging to share directly with neighbours. It stretches the benefits of redirected food even further. Graham also highlights the United Way’s contribution to Food for Life in other areas.

"The United Way vetting program gives donors comfort that we are properly managed and using funds effectively, so we can focus on serving our clients."

Many of us have charities we support for personal reasons. However, there is a wide variety of needs in our community. The United Way goes to great lengths to identify these needs and find and assist vital agencies with good processes to address them. United Way funds mean these agencies can spend more of their resources helping Oakville residents and less of them looking for money.

As donors, we can't know the best way to spread our donations around, but donations of all sizes from many Oakvilleans can be turned to their best effect through the United Way. And who knows when we, or someone close to us, will need help from one of these services. Our donations to the United Way ensure they will all be there for us if that day comes.