Why We Need MORE Refrigeration
By Benita Capers, Director of Operations & Technology
At Last Mile, we’ve built a logistics system to quickly move surplus perishable food to people who need it most. The vast majority of the food we rescue is delivered to one of our nonprofit partners working to feed our neighbors in less than 24 hours. Why? Because hunger cannot wait.
What to do with a large load of perishable food in the beating sun
Consider this: a semi truck full of green bell peppers is rejected at its delivery location because the peppers aren’t the right size, or this certain type of pepper isn’t selling well this week, or the delivery came a day late. There are plenty of reasons, but more often than not, these reasons don’t have anything to do with the quality of the food. In fact, they’re fresh, delicious, edible green peppers.
We rescue this good food and get it to those who need it most. However, with a load this big, we run into a few roadblocks. 1. The load may be too big for one food pantry. 2. Depending on the timing, there may not even be a location available to accept the load. 3. The truck driver may need a home for this food immediately to keep their tight schedule. 4. Most importantly, this food needs to be refrigerated, which limits our immediate options further.
We need more cold storage!
This year, we’ve already rescued 32 rejected loads, totaling just under 147,000 pounds of food. More than 80% of it was fresh produce. As we’ve grown, we’ve adapted our technology to encourage more trucking companies to donate these loads. The need for immediate cold storage for them is growing.
Additionally, we’ve expanded our weekly mobile markets in neighborhoods with limited access to fresh food. We now distribute about 5,000 pounds of free produce, protein, and prepared meals in five neighborhoods eight times per week. Every day we set aside food for the next day’s markets in our current refrigerated container.
A grant from OhioEPA helps us buy two refrigerated containers
Ohio EPA agrees with us that food belongs in people, not landfills. They’ve given us a matching grant to buy two more refrigerated containers. If we raise $50,000 they’ll give us $200,000. That’s $250,000 for the containers and the cost of the refrigeration.
Two more containers will help us save more food by giving truckers an immediate reliable option to donate their rejected loads. This ensures that we are getting this food and distributing it to our partners at its maximum quality.
What’s summer without fresh produce?
Imagine now a truck load of fresh food that would have gone to the landfill, instead arriving at our storage container on a Monday evening. The next morning, we distribute this food throughout our community.
Can you envision kids enjoying watermelon and blueberries in the summer sun? Fresh salads on tables in a neighborhood with limited access to a grocery store? People leaving our Last Mile Market or their local food pantry with bags full of tomatoes, squash, and carrots to prepare for dinner with their families?
If you want to be part of this growth and vision, give what you can to help us match this gift from the Ohio EPA. All gifts are a huge contribution to our overall goal of getting food to those who need it most.
If you want to help bring this vision to life, give what you can.
