Last month, I celebrated Passover, the Jewish holiday that commemorates the exodus of the Children of Israel from slavery in Egypt. The story goes that my ancestors, former slaves, survived by eating manna, a food that fell from heaven, on their way across the Sinai Desert and back to the Promised Land.
Last month I also celebrated Modern Manna feeding the hungry here in Ventura County. The event at the Mana Conejo Valley Food Bank included public recognition and a tour of new kitchen equipment that allows the nonprofit to rescue food that would otherwise go to waste and provide it to the hungry. I made it.
Manna's new equipment, including a refrigerator, steel sorting table and sink, was funded by the Ventura County Recycling Market Development Zone, a program I administer. Some food rescues will require equipment and modifications within the organization's warehouses. Foods in this category include leftover meat from the deli counter at the end of the day, additional meals prepared by the caterer but not served at the event, and items prepared by the restaurant in anticipation of menu items that were not ordered. included. In contrast to regular food banks, such as canned goods, bagged bread, and produce, these prepared foods require much more effort to rescue, maintain, and provide. Time and temperature regulations protect consumers from spoilage, but require precise transportation logistics and refrigeration.
To save this food for the hungry, Manna must work harder and incur more expenses, but the potential rewards are substantial. In addition to providing food that is often tastier and more nutritious, this pilot program allows Mana to access food sources that would previously be sent to landfills. The shelf-stable food normally available to hungry people is often surplus rather than actually thrown away, so the food may be sold at a discount rather than donated. In contrast, cooked food is donated and generators are required by law to make arrangements to rescue it.
Jeff Gorrell (left), Anthony Linkata, and David Goldstein. (R. Scott Horn)
The law, 2016 Senate Bill 1383, goes into effect on January 1, 2022, and is intended to prevent methane emissions from decaying organic matter in landfills by removing food scraps and yard clippings from landfills. Establishes statewide requirements for diversions. The law also mandates that by 2025, at least 20 percent of wasted edible food must be rescued for human consumption. State fees collected at landfills help fund compliance efforts.
Ventura County Supervisor Jeff Gorrell said this at the opening event for Mana's new kitchen. “We all contribute to this (state) recycling fund every day (through landfill fees) and we send millions of dollars to CalRecycle, and it's not coming back to us,” he said to those of us in our community. ..unless you prepare a good project…that's what this project is. We get our own money back so we can use that precious resource to help people. ”
Other food rescue organizations in Ventura County are also benefiting from public grants and assistance to collect prepared food. Through a $500,000 state grant awarded in 2018 by a coalition of public agencies and nonprofit organizations led by the Ventura County Department of Public Health, Spirit of Santa Paula, Oxnard Rescue Mission, and Ventura County Community Health Action purchased refrigerated trucks, refrigerators, and refrigerators. Additional tools for collecting, safely transporting, storing, and serving prepared foods.
Last year, a coalition of eight local cities and Ventura County, led by the county's Department of Public Works' Integrated Waste Management Division, hired Santa Ana-based contractor Abound Food Care to further develop local food. signed a $371,000 contract. relief.
As Thousand Oaks Mayor Pro Tem David Newman noted at the Mana event, the City of Thousand Oaks held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Thrive Globe Navigation Center on Lawrence Drive last month. A $5.8 million grant from the California Interagency Council on Homelessness will help fund housing, food, laundry, restroom facilities, computer stations, drug and alcohol treatment programs, and workforce training. Masu. Additional state funding to the city of Thousand Oaks will pay for a mobile refrigerated trailer and dry storage to help local nonprofit food recovery organizations rescue donated food and increase dry food storage capacity. It is expected that the amount will be spent on. Some food recovery groups in Thousand Oaks are already handling a limited amount of prepared food. For example, Adelante Comunidad Conejo picks up prepackaged salads from Trader Joe's and Vons during the week and distributes them at “open-air flea market” events.
One of Manna's new food sources is Gelson's Thousand Oaks, whose first line on the grocery store's web page reads, “Locals looking for the best gourmet grocery store in Thousand Oaks will find Gelson's You can find everything.'' For local residents looking for food just to meet their bare needs, and for those who are starting elsewhere to collect cooked food, Mana's new program will help provide the basics for health. It will provide a source of essential high-quality nutrition.
To volunteer, donate, or get food:
www.mannaconejo.org
Adelantecomunidadconejo@gmail.com
www.spiritofsantapaula.org
www.foodshare.com
David Goldstein, environmental resources analyst for the Ventura County Public Works Agency, can be reached at 805-658-4312 or david.goldstein@ventura.org.
