Maine Food Waste Solutions Summit

Friday, April 9, 2021

• A recording of the April 9 Food Waste Solutions Summit is now available
• For more information: Susanne Lee

America is a leader in wasted food where 40% of the food we produce is never eaten. For Maine, this means 219 lbs. of food wasted per person or nearly 300 million lbs. annually. At the same time, we have over 200,000 Mainers suffering from food insecurity – including 1 out of 5 of our children. Adding to the problem, these food losses cost Maine nearly $600 million annually (about $1,866 per family of four) and risk our health and natural resources.

The goal of this Summit is to increase the awareness, education and action needed to implement win-win-win solutions to end wasted food in Maine.

Overview

• Summit Agenda
• Speaker Biographies
• Maine Food Waste Solutions Team
  • Team Leader
  • Student Interns
  • Service Learning Students
  • Faculty Advisors

Summit Agenda

10:00AM
Welcome and Introductions
Recognition

10:15AM
Food Waste Solutions and Data

Angel Veza, Senior Manager, Capital Innovation & Engagement, ReFED (Rethink Food Waste through Economics & Data). ReFED is a national non-profit working to end food waste across the U.S. food system using data-driven solutions

10:30AM
Food Waste Solutions: Federal Priorities & Partnerships

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, U.S. Representative for Maine’s first congressional district and a leading advocate for federal policies to support agriculture and end food waste

10:40AM
Food Waste Solutions: State Legislative Overview

Sarah K. Nichols, Sustainable Maine Director, NRCM (Natural Resources Council of Maine)

10:50AM
Maine Food Waste – Success Stories Panel

A panel including Maine Grains, Sodexo, Good Shepherd Food Bank and Skowhegan Public Works presents inspiring local examples of re-thinking food not as waste but as a valuable solution for Maine businesses and communities.

Panelists:

• Bryan Belliveau, Code Enforcement Officer, Building Inspector, Plumbing Inspector, Solid Waste Supervisor, Town of Skowhegan
• Olivia Doucette, Operations Manager, Sodexo, USM Portland, LAC, UMA
• Amber Lambke, Founder and CEO, Maine Grains, Inc; Founding Director, Maine Grain Alliance
• Nancy Perry, Program Manager, Mainers Feeding Mainers, Good Shepherd Food Bank

11:15AM
Q&A Session

11:25AM
Food Waste Solutions: Mitchell Center Student Intern Pilot Programs

Mitchell Center student interns present new opportunities to re-think food not as waste but as “triple bottom line” solutions for Maine’s economic, social, and environmental challenges.

Presenting Students:

• Asher Close
• Hannah Crayton
• Dominique DiSpirito
• Zach Gagne
• Hannah Mathieu
• Riya Mokashi
• Simon Murphy
• Sam Shively

12:00PM
Break

12:15PM
“TAKE ACTION” Breakout Groups

Select from five breakout groups to learn how your organization or community can get started.

1. Do You Want to Track and Measure Wasted Food?
2. Do You Want to Increase Food Donations?
3. Do You Want to Increase Food Education and Awareness?
4. Are You Interested in Food Processing for Agricultural Surplus?
5. Do You Want to Start Community Food Recycling vs. Landfilling?

12:45PM
Group Action Highlights & Next Steps