Network Helps Truck Drivers Deliver Rejected Edible Food to Charities instead of Dumping in Landfills

Dr Roshan Radhakrishnan
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It is a sad reality that tons of good food are classified as unsuitable before they ever reach the marketplace. Truck drivers carrying food products to grocery stores often find that the products get rejected due to cosmetic damages during transit, delays in reaching the store or clerical errors.

Rather than allowing all this food to get wasted, a program started in 2017 allows truck drivers to donate the rejected yet edible food to charity organizations.

truck driving down highway

The Food Drop program, created by the Indy Hunger Network Charity helps connects truck drivers with the nearest food bank to them. In this way, it helps the driver too in multiple ways, including saving them from having to pay landfill fees while disposing off the food, offering tax deductions for donated goods and of course, helping offload the cargo.

Initially meant to operate only in Indianapolis, the Food Drop Program was such a success that over 41,000 kilograms of edible food was donated in just the first 6 months. This led the Indy Hunger Network to expand the Food Drop Program to more food banks across the state.

toll number
The Food Drop Program
The goal behind the Indy Hunger Network was to create a coordinated system that ensured anyone who was hungry could get access to the nutritious food they need. It acknowledged that while there were many in need as well as many ready to help, individual, uncoordinated efforts was just not good enough.


The Food Drop Program isn’t their first program to help the disadvantaged either. Over the years, the Indy Hunger Network has successfully initiated and completed various programs including:
  • The Outreach to Seniors Pilot helping hungry seniors in low income areas receive food assistance.
  • The Glean Team in 2013, created to tackle wastage of food from field to fork, harvested excess and imperfect produce from local farms and gardens and delivered over 7,000 kilos in just one year to the needy.
  • Fresh Bucks, a nutrition incentive program that provides families an option to purchase more fruits and vegetables from local farmers at lesser rates.  

Logo of a company
www.indyhunger.org/


Author's note:


Since 2017, every year, I take up the #BlogchatterA2Z challenge and focus on showcasing lovely real-life heroes from around the worldThe aim is to remind you that there is still plenty of good human beings all around you... to inspire you to smile once more.

Want more stories of compassion? 

I have Hundreds of 'Heroes of Kindness' to brighten your day here. Earlier editions can be viewed from the links below:

2017 edition (Articles - 40, Heroes - 67)
2018 edition (Articles - 34, Heroes - 52)
2019 edition (Articles - 31, Heroes - 42)
2020 edition (Articles - 30, Heroes - 64)


The 2020 Edition is also available as a book on Kindle too, if you want it that wayyy! (IndiaUS)

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21Comments

Let me know what you think.

  1. I wish there was an organized system like this in every part of India. I think Kozhikode has something similar.

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  2. My thoughts too, wish we have a system like this everywhere in India, food wastage is an irony in a country where many sleep without a meal...

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  3. A great way to avoid food wastage, thank you for highlighting it

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  4. I think based on Indy's inspiration only the youngsters are starting food pickup in different cities in India. I came across one in Chennai, to whom we keep giving the excess food that's left after various functions at house.

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  5. India wastes a lot of food and there is an urgent need for such programs here. The number of hungry people too is a large number.

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  6. Food drop program is must in India too. This is a great initiative to reduce food wastage.

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  7. That is one practical programme India can follow too. Do we not have any such organisations in India?
    Deepika Sharma

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  8. At a time when lots of people don't get two square meals a day it's reassuring to see edible food not getting wasted and reaching the ones who need it. Good work!

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  9. Food drop program is an amazing initiative to save food that goes waste and serve those who need it most. there is more need of that kind of program to serve needed people.

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  10. I have heard about Food drop program in Indianapolis. Indeed a great initiative for the people in real need.

    Archana
    archublog

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  11. This is such a better idea indeed, rejecting food only because its aesthetic appeal wasn't bang on is just not right.glad it reached the needy.

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  12. Such a beautiful theme you have chosen. Highlighting heros of kindness is awesome. At Home I am very strict about food wastage.

    - Ujjwal Mishra MywordsMywisdom

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  13. Nice! would love to read a few stories like this For our country India too.

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  14. I think every city and country in the World needs to make Food Drop a must!

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  15. Wow this is such a great concept.. I think this should be applied in every country especially in India where people die due to hunger.. Great initiative I must say.

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  16. Food wastage hurts the most. I wish there was a replica of this system in India. Imagine the wastage of food in a single big fat Indian Marriage!

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  17. I think every country need this system specially india .

    Jyoti

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  18. I need to share this with a lot of friends here in the US as I very frequently witness the wastage of a lot of food. Thanks for sharing, Dr. Roshan.

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  19. This seems really a great initiative... wish we had something like this here in India also.

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  20. That's something great instead of wasting it's reaching people who need it the most. We have a food bank in chennai

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  21. Food pickups are a thing now in India. Hope it sees great light

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