Reposted from Washington Department of Ecology
Congratulations to Cascadia Produce LLC, for being awarded an Industrial Symbiosis grant from the Department of Commerce. In partnership with the Seattle Good Business Network and Cedar Grove Composting, Cascadia produce’s project called Lettuce Help Center has massive potential to divert organic waste from landfills and make sure good quality, rescued food finds a plate.
The goal of the program is to expand access to low-cost food which has been ejected from the food system for any number of reasons and has no clear path to market. This includes visibly flawed or over-produced farm product or multi-pallet retail rejections.
The Lettuce Help Center will 1) remit payment back to originating farms for all product that can be sold, and 2) support the cost of donating remaining good food to organizations serving people in need.
The pilot’s goal is to demonstrate the concept as a viable business model, increase volume of fresh food available to food banks and community groups with limited purchasing budgets, and support small food businesses flexible enough to incorporate unscheduled product into their menus. The program is on track to rescue over a million pounds of food from unnecessary waste in 2023-2024.
Cascadia Produce is a wholesale food business working in collaboration with farms, non-profit community groups, government programs, and other small businesses in Washington to mitigate food insecurity through low-cost access to culturally relevant food.