Archive: Around Town

A year-long campaign to reduce residential food waste in Tompkins County has culminated in the production of a manual designed to be used as a starting point for other communities around New York State.

The "Save the Food" electronic manual is posted on the Food Waste Prevention page of the Tompkins County Solid Waste Division website. It contains a summary of the Food Waste Prevention Campaign undertaken by the County with assistance from a $15,000 Community Grant from the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute (NYS P2I).

The manual also outlines tips and tools used by the County and integrated into existing initiatives to encourage residents to think twice about the amount of uneaten food that goes to waste, and make changes in the way they shop, store and prepare food.

Elements of the project, titled Save the Food: Cooking Up a Food Waste Prevention Campaign for Tompkins County, included: developing a module for inclusion in existing school presentations; coordinating a film screening and community panel discussion at the Finger Lakes Environmental Film Festival (FLEEF); producing a short video – 'Smart Cooking: It Makes Cents'; creating a Food Waste Prevention Challenge among users at select Food Scraps Recycling Drop Spots; and posting information on the Division's website and social media platforms.

"We hope communities and organizations interested in developing a food waste prevention program of their own can learn from what we set out to do in Tompkins County," said Kat McCarthy, Waste Reduction and Recycling Specialist and 'Save the Food' Project Director. "The feedback we received from the community toward our efforts was positive. It was a good first step toward a residential food recovery program the County intends to launch over the next few years," added McCarthy.

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