Reducing Food Waste in Arcata
When it comes to food, we often don't make conscious choices. Our perception of food has been skewed, food labels and best by dates can be confusing, and sometimes, we don't know what to do with leftovers. Unfortunately, all of these choices lead to wasted foods that end up feeding landfills instead of people. In fact, it is estimated that 40% of all food in America is wasted (Feeding America 2021).
Recently, food waste has become an important topic of discussion because of its production of methane adding to the global climate crisis. Certain laws such as California’s SB 1383 have been implemented for education and outreach on food recovery. Many consumers have become aware of food waste and its impacts on the environment leading to engaging in food waste management practices. The United States protection agency describes food waste management as “an approach that seeks to reduce wasted food and its associated impacts over the entire life cycle.” Since food waste management must happen throughout the life cycle of organic materials, management at the consumer level isn't enough. In this article, we highlight two local groups aiding in the fight against food waste, a local organization, Oh SNAP!, and a local business, Los Bagels.
Oh SNAP! is a Cal Poly Humboldt student food program dedicated to increasing nutritious and culturally appropriate food by offering an on-campus food-pantry, a weekly fresh produce stand, CalFresh application assistance, and other local food resources. I met with student organizers, Eveyln Bañuelos, Andrea Gonzales-Gaona, and Shane Burton. Oh SNAP! Shops in bulk to stock up on the student food pantry. They limit their food waste by composting unsalvageable foods, but before they get to that point other precautions are taken. For example, they promote overstocked items or items that are going expired on their social media platforms so students can stop by or they make food. Evelyn even describes how banana bread was made and given out when they had so many bananas left over that were going bad. If there is still a lot of food, then it gets donated to local shelters. In order to limit overstock of foods, they track the number of students that visit to avoid overbuying in the future.
Los Bagels is a local cafe that brings together Jewish and Mexican flavors. They are dedicated to improving their community with their action and impact. For example, they work with vendors and farmers to reduce post-consumer waste. I met with Count Out Manager, Assistant Bookkeeper, and Office Manager, Jennifer Mallett. Food waste reduction begins before the food is even bought. Jennifer described how they do “a lot of pairing of our numbers, pay attention to our comparison sales, and number crunching so that the bakers, presale manager, and counter staff do accurate ordering.” This allows them to keep their numbers low especially since many of their products are fresh and don't have a long shelf life. Los Bagels has different locations and is sold in local grocery stores, but everything is made at their Arcata location to keep everything fresh and their food waste levels low. These actions have also created cost-savings for the business. Los Bagels work with Food for People and Arcata House Project to pick up leftover foods.
Oh SNAP! and Los Bagels are actively looking for ways to reduce food waste and they are a small fraction of local businesses and organizations dedicated to the fight. Hopefully their actions can inspire other places to take action.