Feeding the hungry by throwing away food

NEPTUNE, N.J. — Shore area grocers can't wait to throw their food away these days.

What was for years a loosely-organized program run by the FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties to extend the life of expiring food is now a thriving operation for the region's largest safety net for the food insecure.

Last year, the food bank hired Mychal Mills to run its retail store donation program, which capitalizes on the cautious, but often unnecessary, details of food labeling. As products approach or reach their expiration dates — which are often just advisories — the food bank comes to pick them up and distribute them to its network of 260 food pantries and programs.

But for years without a dedicated employee running the program, the list of donors was small, and so was the amount of donations.

After the recession, the food bank's donations dropped off and demand ticked up. The food bank hired Mills last July to run the program, and together they set a goal to collect 1 million pounds of food from grocers and retailers in Monmouth and Ocean counties for the year.

At this point last year, the food bank had collected 480,000 pounds from about 30 donors. As of Tuesday, it had 60 donors and collected 1.3 million pounds of food, and the food is increasingly healthier, with nearly 20 percent of the donations made up of fruits and vegetables, according to Mills.

"Donors are starting to see the benefits," Mills said. "It just makes sense. We're turning food waste into a viable food source."

The expiration, or 'best by,' date doesn't mean a product is bad or unsafe. In New Jersey, an expiration date is only required on bottled water and "fluid milk products" like milk and yogurt, according to the state Department of Health. The Department of Agriculture also says that expired food should be safe and wholesome if handled properly.

"The quality of the food has been superb," Mills said. The recipients, he added, have "never seen this variety of food, and they've never seen this quality before. You can see that they're in awe, and they're very appreciative."

Now the food bank's goal is to hit 1.6 million pounds of food donations by July — a "critical" contribution to the food bank's overall goal of collecting 9 million pounds for the year, Mills said.

And Mills is expanding the program beyond grocers and retailers to include collecting straight from food sources — farms and manufacturers. Soon it will be looking for volunteers to help coordinate with donors, Mills said.

"I can't help but feel the optimism and enthusiasm from everyone in the program," he said. "I can't tell you enough about the smiling, the 'wows.' It's amazing."