Adjusting to Pandemic Restrictions

Last semester, the pandemic pushed colleges and universities across the country to implement new regulations that would keep their campus communities safe, but these regulations often left Food Recovery Network (FRN) chapters unable to recover surplus food on campus. 

What goes into starting a chapter where you live?

At Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), in-person gatherings were prohibited, making it impossible for our student chapter to organize food recoveries on campus. However, when the WPI chapter realized they couldn’t activate, as usual, they identified new ways, beyond food recovery, to help their partner agency, Friendly House.

The Chapter leadership team set a goal to accomplish 2-3 service projects every eight weeks with Friendly House. Throughout the fall, they coordinated donation drop-offs, including non-perishable foods, masks, and holiday gifts, and they also created children’s goodie bags and care packages for the homeless. 

“Be ready to adapt and don’t let quarantine and pandemic life bog down your perception of what your chapter can do...”

— Hannah Schulz

We spoke with Hannah Schulz, Chapter President, about WPI’s efforts during the pandemic to maintain their partnership with Friendly House. When asked what advice she would offer to students who want to start a new chapter, Schulz replied, “Be ready to adapt and don’t let quarantine and pandemic life bog down your perception of what your chapter can do...Look at all of the options and opportunities in front of you and make the most of it.”

We are inspired by chapter leaders and volunteers like Hannah who continually demonstrate there is no limit to the work we can do to activate in support of our communities. Check out the full interview with Hannah to learn more about WPI Chapter’s work this past fall, and to hear about her vision for a just and equitable food system. 

What goes into starting a chapter where you live?

When asked to describe what a just and equitable food system looks like, Schulz replied, “A just and equitable food system means eliminating the fear of not knowing where your next meal is coming from for everyone, independent of your identity and where you are in life. The key to that is forming these connections and partnerships where we can deliver food and eliminate food insecurity.”

FRN10X and Top 10 States for Expansion

When I came to Food Recovery Network (FRN), a little under a year ago, our Executive Director Regina Anderson shared with me her vision of a network that would grow ten-fold, and a movement that would represent a more just and equitable food system. My job as the first Chief Operating Officer (COO) was to make that happen. To begin, I leveraged the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Results Count Framework.

Results Count® is a data-driven methodology to close racial and ethnic disparities in your work, regardless of focus area. For us at FRN, this meant getting specific about the result we seek in the world and how we will keep ourselves accountable to contributing to make progress on it. For FRN, our result is to recover surplus food to feed everyone who is hungry in the U.S.

While we recognize FRN cannot alone achieve this goal, we identified where FRN can have a unique contribution to moving our movement closer to achieving it. Using two publicly available data sets, the EPA’s excess food map, and Feeding America’s Map, the Meal Gap, on the number of people experiencing hunger, we overlaid these data sets on maps where FRN also has chapters. Looking at the states with BOTH ample opportunities of recovering surplus food and more than 20% of the state’s population experiencing hunger, we prioritized ten states where we believe we can replicate FRN’s structure of recovering surplus food from commercial/industrial settings; and then redistributing it so we can feed more people, where there is the most need, faster.

The states are Alabama, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas. More details on each state can be found below.

It is important to note our support of chapters across the U.S. will continue as will our growth on campuses across the nation because of the dedication of our student leaders who see access to food as a right, and FRN as a way to help people in their community today.

Please join us in expanding our network in each of these states. You can do this by donating to FRN to support our outreach or connecting with program staff to connect us with the appropriate person at your school.

Meet the Student Leaders at FRN's Carleton College Chapter

Carleton College joined FRN in February of 2014 and has recovered over 150,000 lbs to date. Fun fact, last semester they also helped their local food shelf move 6000 pounds of cereal between storage facilities! Leaders from Carleton worked together to answer the following questions about their work. Responses have been edited slightly for brevity.

What is most fulfilling about your work with FRN. Why?

It’s easy to get stuck in the Carleton bubble, so FRN is a nice way to break out into the great community. Also, recovering tasty food and making meals that we know we would enjoy.

What inspired you to join an FRN chapter?

We were inspired to join Food Recovery because of the ability to interact with the greater Northfield community in a meaningful way while working to help resolve the unjust food system and redistribute food that would have been wasted.

WHAT GOES INTO STARTING A CHAPTER where you live?

During the pandemic, how has this experience been valuable to you?

During the pandemic, we have been one of the few in-person volunteer opportunities for students, and we have been able to maintain our connections with our community partners. As leaders, we have been liaisons for communicating the new needs of the school and our community partners to maximize everyone’s participation in and benefit from Food Recovery Network. The pandemic has resulted in huge increases in food insecurity and needs in our community, and FRN provides a way to actually make a difference despite the restrictions and isolation. It has also been a valuable time to incorporate college faculty and staff into our work with FRN since they’ve helped out with off-campus food deliveries.

What does a just and equitable food system look like to you?

Elimination of systemic hunger. Everyone has access to the food that they want, has healthy options, and corporations do not profit while food is wasted. Connections are formed between sources of food waste and areas of food insecurity. Our chapter has recently thought more about Indigenous food sovereignty and how a just food system will be a decolonial food system that returns power over food to Indigenous peoples and nations.

What advice would you give to new members – especially during a pandemic? 

Being flexible is really important and although volunteering doesn’t look the same as before, there are some unique opportunities to interact with the community in new ways that are really gratifying. Also, don’t be afraid to reach out to others! During this time people are more willing to help each other with their time, energy, and food. This is a great responsibility, and it will definitely expose you to some tasks that you have no familiarity with. Communicate with your peers and professors if you need help!

What impact has your chapter had during the pandemic?

We’ve been able to continue food recovery from our dining halls and nearby retailers 4 days/week and provide that food to 3 community partners. Our program directors have also been able to work remotely on several projects for the nearby Community Action Center, including grant writing, GIS analysis, and outdoor food distribution.

Why should others start an FRN chapter if their school doesn’t have one?

Having an FRN chapter at your school can have a big impact on the local community, and you can get to know a lot more about the people and organizations in the town where your college is. It is also super fun! You get to bond with other leaders as well as meet and train new volunteers.

WHAT GOES INTO STARTING A CHAPTER where you live?

What is your Instagram handle?

@carletonfoodrecovery

Meet Madeira - FRN Chapter President at Olivet Nazarene University

Madeira Sherwood is the President of Food Recovery Network at Olivet Nazarene University.  FRN at ONU was founded in November of 2017 and has recovered almost 20,412  lbs. to date!

What is most fulfilling about your work with FRN. Why?

It is so encouraging to see the growth of our student volunteers. It is amazing to watch this group of students, who barely knew each other when they began, work together to make such a measurable impact in our community! I often think about how volunteering as a college student is so much more than the hours put in and even the results. Our volunteers are creating a habit of service, and this is something that they will take with them across the country and the world after graduation. I can’t even begin to imagine the ways these students will change the world!

What is your favorite part of being a member of your FRN chapter? 

As college students, we are all so busy, but there is something so special about coming together with your peers to make this world a better place. FRN has been a great opportunity to bring more meaning from your college experience than just getting a degree!

WHAT GOES INTO STARTING A CHAPTER?

If you are a chapter founder, why did you want to start a chapter in your community?

While I wasn’t the one to initiate this project, I did get the privilege of working on the team that planned for and established our FRN chapter at Olivet. I joined this team because I saw the need in our community and the excess resources that we had available at Olivet. I couldn’t just stand around after seeing this disconnect. I wanted to be a part of bridging the gap!

During the pandemic, how has this experience been valuable to you?

There are so many things that have been out of our control during this pandemic, and it has likely left us all with many moments of feeling helpless. Being able to continue our work with FRN during the pandemic has not only been a source of consistency, but it has also been an incredible opportunity to serve others in a time when the need is so great.

What does a just and equitable food system look like to you?

I want to be a part of a movement that sets all people up for success. One of the ways to do that is to ensure that everyone is receiving the necessities of life. There are enough resources, so we should be purposeful about connecting the resources with those in need around us.

What advice would you give to new members – especially during a pandemic? What was something you wish someone had told you before you took on your role?

At times, leading a group of student volunteers can be overwhelming and frustrating, but in the end, it is so worth it! I would encourage anyone to stay committed and keep their focus on what led them there – a deep passion for helping others.

What is your Instagram handle?

Personal Instagram: @madeira_sherwood, FRN Instagram: @frnolivet

Meet Alex - FRN Chapter President at Ohio State University

Alexander Carr is president at the Ohio State University Food Recovery Network chapter. FRN at OSU was able to double its volunteer base this past Fall, and never missed a pickup with their food donor!

What is most fulfilling about your work with FRN. Why?

To me, the most fulfilling part about my work with FRN is the direct impact I can make on my community and all the great relationships that form as a result. Working with the university administration, our partner agencies, and our amazing volunteers to make a real, tangible difference in reducing food waste is a tremendously fulfilling and rewarding experience.

What is your favorite part of being a member of your FRN chapter? 

My favorite part of being a member of The Ohio State FRN chapter is all the creative efforts we have done in the past several years to reduce food waste. For example, when our partner agencies ran out of capacity for donated baked goods our volunteers came up with many creative ways to recycle them sustainably. We worked with a local livestock farmer to convert them into pig feed, composted, and even worked with a local brewery to create a beer out of bagels! Being surrounded by a group of capable, passionate volunteers leads to exciting new projects and relationships in our community.

WHAT GOES INTO STARTING A CHAPTER?

During the pandemic, how has this experience been valuable to you?

Last year when Ohio State moved classes online and effectively closed campus, we were unable to continue recoveries. While frustrating, our leadership team used the downtime to brainstorm and think about what we want the future of our club to look like. We knew that because of the pandemic, food insecurity was at unprecedented levels and knew that we had to continue our mission to try and contribute to our struggling community. In the fall, we threw ourselves into online recruitment making videos, hosting presentations, and trying to connect with students looking to make an impact. In this way, we were successful, more than doubling our volunteer base for the upcoming year and growing our leadership team. During the semester, we had to be extremely proactive in communicating with our university donation locations, partner agencies, and volunteers to make sure that we were following COVID's best practices and ensuring that all parties were comfortable with how we were operating. I’m proud to say that we never missed a pickup and donated thousands of pounds of food to our partner agencies in the fall semester. The pandemic has forced me to be more resilient, creative, and communicative with all parties involved with our efforts. It has also increased my passion for this work, as I know that what we do is needed more than ever now.

What does a just and equitable food system look like to you?

In Columbus, OH there are many areas of the city known as “food deserts'' in which residents have limited access to fresh, healthy food shopping options. This is not unique to Columbus, nearly every city in America has these areas that have disproportionately large minority populations. For a just and equitable food system, these gaps must be closed. I see equitable food as more decentralized and community-oriented. Instead of opening more big-box supermarkets, I believe that smaller markets integrated into the community that locally source their food (whether it be through community gardens or vertical farming) are key to strengthening these areas, minimizing food deserts, and strengthening community resilience.

What advice would you give to new members – especially during a pandemic? What was something you wish someone had told you before you took on your role?

It’s no secret that universities are very supportive of sustainability-related organizations right now. Use that to your advantage. It’s critical to have a champion for Food Recovery in your university administration. They can introduce you to people you’d like to meet with, increase the visibility of your efforts, and help you identify new projects to focus on. Beyond that, don’t be afraid to be creative and think outside the box. Many of our best ideas came out of conversations starting with “Wouldn’t it be cool if…”. Create relationships with other sustainability organizations at your university, it opens the door to collaborative efforts.

What is your Instagram handle?

@osufoodrecovery!