274,000 pounds of food (and counting) recovered

Although the average college campus generates about 169,000 pounds of uneaten food every year, the College Park chapter of the Food Recovery Network has recovered over 274,000 pounds of food waste to date, and this number is still growing.

The Food Recovery Network (FRN), a nonprofit food waste recovery organization founded by four University of Maryland students in 2011, donates uneaten food from college dining halls to groups such as Christian Life Center in Riverdale Park and, in the past, other organizations such as Family Crisis Center in Brentwood. There are now eight FRN chapters in Maryland and 230 chapters across the nation, accounting for over 3 million pounds of food recovered.

“The Food Recovery Network started off at the 251 North diner, so we recover from 251 every single week night, while we recover from North Campus Diner only a couple times a week,” said Nishu Hosamane, vice president of FRN. In the past, the organization has also saved food from South Campus Dining Hall and the Adele H. Stamp Catering Kitchen.

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