20 Organizations Dedicated to Reducing Food Waste

By William Qu

Published 12 Sept 2020

Food waste, despite posing a significant problem for the environment and the global economy, has presented a major market opportunity for many companies, with underlying financial benefits for all sectors of society, including consumers, businesses, and governments. Food waste has also been an issue that many non-profit organizations aim to help resolve. Here are 20 organizations, including non-profits, start-ups, and established companies fighting to reduce food waste. 

 ​  1. Regrained

• a start-up that developed a patent-pending technology to upcycle spent grain from the beer brewing process

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   2. Misfit Foods​​

• a start-up dedicated to reducing food waste by transforming "ugly" fruits and vegetables into bottled juices

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   3. Rubies in the Rubble

• a UK start-up that transforms wasted produce into ketchup, relishes, and chutneys

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   4. ¡Yappah!

• a company that uses spent malted barley from beer brewing and veggie purees near their expiration dates combined with chicken breast scraps and tapioca flour to make chicken crisps

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   5. Kelloggs and Seven Bro7thers Brewery

• a partnership in which Kelloggs sends rejected cornflakes to the Seven Bro7thers Brewery in Manchester to be used as part of the grain that goes into their products

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   6. Upprinting Food

• a Netherlands-based startup that uses 3D printing technology to upscale different kinds of food waste into elegant snacks

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   7. Wheyward Spirit

• an Oregon-based startup that turns whey, a byproduct of cheese, into a unique spirit comparable to vodka

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   8. Pulp Pantry

• a Los Angeles-based startup that repurposes juice pulp, a byproduct of juicing into a grain-free granola

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   9. Barnana

• a start-up based in California that transforms bananas “unfit” for export from organic banana farms into simple banana-based snacks including chewy banana bites, plantain chips, and banana brittle

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 10. The Coffee Cherry Co.

• a company that reuses coffee cherries by dehydrating and milling them to produce high-fiber flour that can be used as a flavor enhancer, potentially helping to reduce the amount of sugar in processed food

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 11. Apeel  

• an environmentally sustainable food company that uses materials that exist in the peels, seeds, and pulp of all fruits and vegetables to create a protective extra peel that seals moisture in and keeps oxygen out. This method keeps produce fresh, nutritious, and delicious twice as long. It also means less produce goes to waste throughout the supply chain — from grower to retailer to consumers at home. 

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 12. ReFED 

• a national non-profit organization working to end food loss and waste across the U.S. food system by advancing data-driven solutions to the problem.

• ReFED leverages data and insights to highlight supply chain inefficiencies and economic opportunities; mobilizes and connects people to take targeted action.

• Goal is a sustainable, resilient, and inclusive food system that optimizes environmental resources, minimizes climate impacts, and makes the best use of the food we grow. 

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 13. City Harvest

• The world’s first food rescue organization founded in 1982.

• Collect over 55 million pounds of excess food from restaurants, grocers, bakeries, manufacturers, and farms and deliver it free-of-charge to 500 community food programs across New York City.

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 14. Excess NYC

• A non-profit organization that investigates the amount of food that goes to waste in New York City.

• They work to divert food from landfills by transporting waste and repurposing it to feed people or sending it to compost. They plan to work with small businesses to change their food waste disposal practices.

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 15. DC Central Kitchen

• a food distribution service based in Washington D.C. that delivers free meals to homeless shelters, transitional homes and nonprofit organizations.

• They have food recycling programs, which allow them to turn leftovers and surplus food into nutritional meals for those in need. They also offer culinary training for unemployed adults and healthy school lunches for low-income students.

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 16. Food Recovery Network

• a student-led organization founded at the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland that creates recovery programs on college campuses to help eliminate food waste in dining halls 

• Has more than 192 chapters and has recovered more than 1,300,000 pounds of food since 2011.

• Has since spread to 42 states.

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 17. Copia

• a company based in San Fracisco, California that makes healthy food more accessible to people in need by helping businesses redistribute high-quality excess food in six cities across the San Francisco Bay Area. 

• Those with food to donate are able to post information via an app and a driver will come to pick up the food. Someone looking for food can post their request online and wait for a match. 

• Other businesses will use Copia's technology and service to feed the hungry, save money, and reduce waste. 

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 18. Imperfect Produce

• a company that source cosmetically-challenged ("ugly") produce, affordable pantry items, and quality eggs and dairy that would otherwise by wasted from farmers and deliver them directly to customers in the Bay Area at a reduced price. 

• Company also offers community drop-off points and a bulk ordering program.

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 19. L.A. Kitchen

• a non-profit organization that trains unemployed men and women to use healthy, local ingredients that would otherwise be wasted due to cosmetic issues to cook delicious meals for those in need

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 20. FoodLoop

• a German company that purchases food products with a short remaining shelf-life from retail stores and offer them to consumers at a lower price through the FoodLoop mobile app.  

• Customers who use the app receive special offers and discounts based on their interests and purchase history.