Malnutrition Labels: Raising Awareness and Inspiring Action
We're On a Mission to #ChangeTheFacts on Food Waste and Hunger.
At the Dole Sunshine Company, we believe that good nutrition is a human right. Like sunshine, it should be accessible, affordable and available to all. However, around the world, this is not the reality due to a gap between food (what is produced) and feed (what is available for consumption). For example, in the U.S. 108 billion pounds of food are wasted yearly, yet more than 54 million Americans are food insecure.
The Dole Sunshine Company is committed to bringing attention to the impact of food waste on malnutrition and food insecurity by partnering with City Harvest and the Times Square Alliance and sharing staggering statistics about food waste and driving action to reduce it.
After a larger-than-life activation earlier in the year, projecting Malnutrition Labels on the sides of New York, Los Angeles and Baltimore buildings, Dole and City Harvest are getting the word out in a small but relevant space, New York’s trash bins. By presenting New Yorkers with this information, we hope to #ChangeTheFacts and reduce food waste in New York City and across the country.
Malnutrition is a Global Epidemic
Curated by Dole and City Harvest
Check out these tips and recipes curated by Dole and City Harvest, New York City's largest food rescue organization, for the getting the most out of your pantry and to reduce food waste at home.
To create recipes that upcycle leftover food and ingredients and promote healthy eating, Dole worked with City Harvest's Junior Food Council co-chairs and chefs Madeline and Anna Zakarian.
Check out these two recipes from Madeline and Anna - Frozen Strawberry Lemonade and One Pan Chicken Thighs with Fruit.
Change the way you shop for groceries
Be more mindful about your purchases, plan out your meals for the week and buy only what's needed, consider signing up for one of the new sustainable grocery delivery services, and check out apps like Too Good to Go that connect consumers to surplus food that would otherwise be thrown away.
Know your labels
"Sell by" lets retailers know how long an item can stay on the shelf. “Best if used by" specifies when a product is at its peak freshness. “Use by" indicates when an item will start deteriorating in quality.
Donate
Have any ingredients you don't want or won't use in time? Donate any nutritious, safe, and edible food to your local food bank to support those without access to healthy foods.
City Harvest Helps Put Food on the Table
City Harvest is New York City’s first and largest food rescue organization, helping to feed millions of New Yorkers who struggle to put meals on their tables. Their trucks rescue excess food from places like local restaurants, grocery stores and manufacturers like Dole, and deliver it to hundreds of soup kitchens and food pantries across the five boroughs. The mobile market this year rescued and distributed thousands of pounds of food.
Sources
- https://stopwastingfoodmovement.org/food-waste/food-waste-facts/
- https://www.actionagainsthunger.org/world-hunger-facts-statistics
- https://www.who.int/news/item/15-07-2019-world-hunger-is-still-not-going-down-after-three-years-and-obesity-is-still-growing-un-report
- https://www.usda.gov/foodwaste/faqs
- https://www.aamc.org/news-insights/54-million-people-america-face-food-insecurity-during-pandemic-it-could-have-dire-consequences-their
- https://www.feedingamerica.org/our-work/our-approach/reduce-food-waste
- https://www.futurity.org/food-waste-united-states-sustainability-consumers/
- https://www.nokidhungry.org/who-we-are/hunger-facts
- https://www.nycfoodpolicy.org/food-waste-food-by-the-numbers/
- https://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/new-york
- https://www.cunyurbanfoodpolicy.org/news/2021/3/29/we-hunger-for-more-using-youth-generated-data-to-advocate-for-the-basics-and-then-beyond
- https://www.usda.gov/foodlossandwaste/why
- https://www.cityharvest.org/food-insecurity/
- https://nylcv.org/news/working-solve-new-yorks-food-waste-problem/
- https://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/new-york