OMAHA, Neb. — Tons of food from places like grocery stores, restaurants, quick service stations and catering events get thrown out. That was until Saving Grace Food Rescue came to the rescue.
"We have captured and redistributed over 5.7 million pounds of food. It is not only feeding the hungry but it is keeping it out of our landfill. If it goes into the landfill it turns into methane gas which stays in our air. So it is a win, win situation," said Beth Ostdiek Smith, CEO of Saving Grace Food Rescue.
Because the food is perishable, they have to pick the food up and deliver it on the same day. Things like fresh fruit, vegetables, milk, salads and sandwiches give fresh and healthy food options to families in need.
"It is incredibly important for our community to receive these kinds of foods, especially right now when our families are homeschooling. We have seen an immense increase in kids coming to our pantry and it is really important for them to continue their education with this nutritious food," said Mikaela Schuele, Director of Catholic Charities Food Pantry.
Saving Grace is the only fresh food rescue in the region. Because time is of the essence, they have employees as it is just too hard to depend on volunteers and their availability. They call themselves a non-profit business providing a charitable service to the community.
"We now have 50 food donors. With the pandemic, it kind of went down, but now it is going back up and we deliver to 43 non-profits," added Smith.
The food comes from food overstock, new deliveries coming in so shelf space is needed or the food is close to its expiration date but not yet expired.
There is still plenty of time left for the "best if used by date," and the food is still valuable.
If you or your business has leftover fresh food items, they would love to rescue your food as well. You can contact them at www.savinggracefoodrescue.org.