Did you know that 30% of all food in the U.S. is wasted? Y, Cada año se desperdician casi 6 millones de toneladas de alimentos. Sólo en California.

At Second Harvest, we’re on a mission to change that. As the leader in food rescue across Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, we rescue more food than any other organization in our region. Last fiscal year alone, we saved over 86 million pounds of fresh, high-quality food and made sure it reached neighbors experiencing food insecurity.

By rescuing fresh produce from farms and nutritious food from retail stores and distributors– good food that would otherwise go to waste– we provide more variety to the clients we serve and also help protect the planet.

El impacto local del Proyecto de Ley del Senado 1383

“Second Harvest is committed to providing more diverse foods to our clients while doing our part to reduce greenhouse gases created through food waste,” said Melissa Gaherty, Second Harvest regional food sourcing manager. “We help businesses comply with SB 1383, which requires them to donate more of their surplus, quality food. This means that more healthy food is available for people who are facing food insecurity and less goes into landfills.”

We play a leading role in food rescue across our two counties, Ayudar a las empresas a cumplir con el Proyecto de Ley 1383 del Senado de CaliforniaEl mandato de la ley (SB 1383) exige que se rescaten los alimentos comestibles.

  • We ensure rescued food flows seamlessly — and safely — from retailers to local partners. Last year our food rescue team connected more than 130 partner agencies to over 230 stores for an average of 820+ pickups from food donors per week. This came to a total of over 17 million pounds of food rescued from grocery stores.
  • Our retail rescue program has more than doubled since the implementation of SB1383, with a 123% increase in pounds rescued from retail stores since January 2021.

I’m proud to be part of the Second Harvest Grocery Rescue program. From fresh produce to bread and dairy, these donations help put meals on the table for people right here in our community. Our team works hard to sort and distribute everything so it gets into the hands of those who can use it — no cost, no judgment, just help. Together, we make a difference — one grocery rescue at a time. Thank you.

–Ron Kim, Salvation Army Sunnyvale

Menos desperdicio, más comida

Helping businesses comply with SB 1383 is just one part of our robust food rescue program. Of the nearly 111 million pounds of food we sourced and distributed last year, 75% was rescued.

Los alimentos rescatados reducen el desperdicio y nuestra huella de carbono. Solo en nuestro último año fiscal:

  • We saved over 86 million pounds of food from going to waste, saving the planet 47,000 metric tons (or over 105M pounds) of carbon dioxide and nearly 2 billion gallons of water. This is equivalent to taking nearly 11,400 passenger vehicles off the road for a year and saving enough water to fill more than 2,900 Olympic sized swimming pools, according to the Calculadora de impacto del motor ReFED Insights.
  • Of the 93 million pounds of rescued food, nearly 56 million pounds of that was fresh produce we saved from being plowed under in the fields.

Apoyando a Second Harvest se apoya el rescate de alimentos

Rescatar alimentos es una gran tarea. Requiere muchos voluntarios, personal y recursos financieros para recoger, transportar y distribuir rápidamente alimentos a los vecinos que sufren inseguridad alimentaria. Al apoyar a Second Harvest, ayudas a reducir el desperdicio de alimentos y a alimentar a nuestros vecinos.