Alameda County Community Food Bank is proud to announce that we’re a Certified California Green Business!
Food banks like ours are dedicated to building sustainable food systems — and, at Alameda County Community Food Bank, we believe that also includes tackling climate change. Climate change and ecological injustices disproportionately affect people of color, low-income communities, and those of us who face food insecurity. Low-income communities already have higher rates of many adverse health conditions, are more exposed to environmental hazards, and take longer to bounce back from natural disasters. These existing inequalities are only exacerbated due to climate change.
We are committed to addressing our environmental impact and investing in the health of our community. We’re proud to share the ways you’ve helped us go green and better ensure our ability to meet community needs:
Powering Our Warehouse with Solar Energy
In 2016, the Food Bank installed 880 solar panels on our roof to assist in powering our 119,000 square feet of warehouse and office space. Warehouses and giant refrigerators can consume a lot of electricity. Using solar energy, however, not only helps our operations be more sustainable but also allows us to use the savings to better serve neighbors across Alameda County. In fact, over the lifespan of our solar panels, we expect to save enough to provide millions of additional meals!
Diverting Food Waste
Our Food Recovery Program (FRP) recovers excess food from grocery stores for our partner organizations to provide to neighbors across the county. By diverting food that would otherwise be wasted, and thus reducing the environmental impact of food in our landfills, we can both feed and protect our community. Since 2016, our FRP has recovered over 40 million pounds of food — which equates to 33 million meals! Our efforts to make sure healthy food doesn’t go to waste are still growing and help ensure that every child, family, and senior in our community has enough food on the table.
We also have two hybrid trucks for FRP, making our fleet more environmentally friendly as we work to serve the community.
Another way we divert food waste is through our compost efforts. We compost 90% of our inedible produce or donate it to a farm in San Martin. Recently during our weekly drop-off, we donated 33,000 pounds of produce to feed the pigs, goats, and cows at the farm!
Future Sustainability Efforts
The Food Bank is always looking for ways to save energy and be more environmentally conscious. Issues like hunger and climate change can often seem daunting, but together we can make a difference and make the world a greener place. Alameda County Community Food Bank is proud to be a certified green business and appreciates the support we’ve received along the way from volunteers, donors, staff, and our community. We look forward to growing our sustainability efforts.
