CONTRIBUTED BY PFMA MEMBER SHARING EXCESS
In America, we waste enough food each year to equal 123 billion meals, according to Feeding America. Yet our national “meal gap,” the total shortage needed to feed every person experiencing food insecurity, is only 9.1 billion meals. If we rescued even ten percent of what we throw away, we could theoretically end hunger in the United States.
So why don’t we?
Because food rescue, while conceptually simple, is logistically hard. The work of picking up, sorting, and redistributing perishable food at scale is a complex, time-sensitive operation that most local hunger relief organizations aren’t built to handle. But as sustainability and ESG commitments rise across the industry, the question isn’t whether to divert surplus; it’s how.
Major corporations are pledging to become waste-free by 2030. Supermarkets and wholesalers are setting bold goals to donate or repurpose half, or even all, of their surplus food. Yet a goal without an infrastructure partner is just an aspiration. And that’s where organizations like Sharing Excess come in.
At Sharing Excess, we believe food rescue is not just an act of charity. It is a dedicated service. It deserves the same professionalization, investment, and consistency that businesses already give to waste management, composting, or recycling. Historically, surplus donation has been treated as charity. The food is free, so shouldn’t the labor be too? We want to challenge that idea.
When a business invests in food rescue, it invests in reliability. That means paid, trained drivers who show up on schedule. It means an on-call logistics network that can handle 20 boxes or 20 truckloads. And it means data. Real, transparent reporting on where your donations go, who they serve, and how they are changing lives.
For our partners, the results speak for themselves. They gain tax benefits, save on hauling and tipping fees, and strengthen their ESG reporting. They also save time. When staff are left to manage unpredictable donations internally, making calls, finding nonprofits, and coordinating pickups, that is time pulled from their core work.
A powerful example of this model is unfolding
right here in Pennsylvania. Four years ago, we approached the Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market (PWPM), one of the largest produce markets in the country, after learning that edible food was being thrown away simply because there was not a consistent, large-scale outlet for donation.
We proposed a pilot: give us a small corner of space inside the market and let us try collecting donations at the source. That small experiment grew into something transformational. Today, our team operates on-site every day, rescuing and redistributing over 40 million pounds of fresh produce that would otherwise have gone to waste.
The results are remarkable. PWPM has become the single largest source of fresh food donations in Philadelphia. Vendors have earned more than $4 million in Pennsylvania tax credits for their generosity. The market has saved over $1.5 million in waste-hauling costs. And more than one million Pennsylvanians have fed their families as a result.
That is what happens when a business does not just make a pledge but makes an investment.
Because when we waste food, we are wasting every ounce of work that went into it: the land, water, labor, fuel, refrigeration, packaging, and shelf space. Food rescue at scale is one of the most cost-effective climate solutions and one of the most direct ways for food businesses to contribute to their communities.
The path is clear. We have the infrastructure. We have the technology. We have the proof. Now we just need to move faster and shift the mindset from donation to dedicated service.
By working together, retailers, wholesalers, and partners across Pennsylvania can ensure that no good food goes to waste and no person goes hungry. ■