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SAN GABRIEL VALLEY COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS
One Valley. One Voice.
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Food Recovery for Equity, Sustainability, and Health
(FRESH SGV)
FRESH SGV optimizes the recovery of surplus edible food in the San Gabriel Valley to decrease food waste, address food insecurity, and support Cities' compliance with state mandates.
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ABOUT THE PROGRAM
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, one-third of the U.S. food supply goes to waste. Food waste recovery organization, ReFED, estimates that food waste emissions from landfills are equivalent to that of 72 coal-burning power plants.
The passage of Senate Bill 1383 (SB 1383) in September 2016 imposed statewide targets to reduce the disposal of organic waste by 75% by January 1, 2025 (based on 2014 levels) and recover at least 20% of currently disposed edible food for human consumption by 2025. The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) finalized and adopted SB 1383 guidelines in November 2020 with the approval of the Office of Administrative Law.
As a result, the SGVCOG launched the San Gabriel Valley Regional Food Recovery Program on September 29, 2021 to support member agencies to comply with SB 1383's food recovery mandates and significantly reduce food waste in the San Gabriel Valley. Known as one of the largest regional food recovery programs in California, this Program includes assessing commercial edible food waste generators, identifying and fostering partnerships with local food recovery organizations, implementing outreach and education endeavors, and developing and implementing inspection protocols.
The SGVCOG is currently moving into Phase 2 of the SGV Regional Food Recovery Program. This expansion seeks to establish subregional food recovery hubs, increase the region’s food recovery capacity and infrastructure, and to continue to conduct outreach efforts to edible food waste generators, food recovery organizations, and residents about SB 1383 regulations.
For questions, please reach out to Mackenzie Bolger, Senior Management Analyst (mbolger@sgvcog.org).
PARTICIPATING CITIES
Participating cities for the Program's capacity assessment include:
Alhambra
Azusa
Covina
Duarte
Glendora
Irwindale
La Canada Flintridge
Monrovia
Monterey Park
Pomona
San Marino
South Pasadena
Temple City
Walnut
Participating cities for the Program's inspection and/or hub development components include:
Arcadia
Azusa
Baldwin Park
Covina
Duarte
Glendora
Irwindale
La Canada Flintridge
Monrovia
Monterey Park
Pomona
Rosemead
San Gabriel
South Pasadena
Temple City
West Covina
SUB-REGIONAL FOOD RECOVERY HUBS
FRESH SGV has provided grant funding to three local nonprofits to serve as sub-regional food recovery hubs. Hubs collect surplus food from grocery stores and restaurants and redistribute it to smaller food banks, food pantries, or directly to the community to reduce food waste and food insecurity in our community.
Each hub serves a subregion within the San Gabriel Valley. The subregional hubs, their service areas, and their contact information are listed below.
If you are grocery store, restaurant, or other edible food generator that would like to coordinate a donation, or if you are a smaller food back wanting to work with one of the hubs, please contact the appropriate hub below.
Foothill Unity Center, Inc.
Service Area: Baldwin Park, Duarte, Irwindale, La Cañada-Flintridge, and Monrovia
Contact:
(626) 650-1268
God's Pantry
Heart of Compassion Distribution
Service Area: Monterey Park, Rosemead, San Gabriel, and South El Monte
Contact:
(323) 727-7997