The Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has launched a campaign titled, “Food Is Too Good to Waste – Reducing Food Waste Begins With You.”
The campaign’s purpose is to provide ways for residents, businesses, and organizations to reduce around 124,000 tons of throwaway food per a county press release.
County Executive Marc Elrich said donating excess edible food to food pantries and shelters and buying only what we need will help decrease food waste. “It’s sad to think Montgomery County residents and business are throwing away roughly 124,000 tons of food scraps a year, when we have residents who do not have regular access to food,” Elrich said.
According to the U.S Environmental Agency, food waste is one of the biggest streams of material in American trash.
“Throwing away unused or leftover food doesn’t seem like a big deal but it adds up,” said County DEP Acting Director Adriana Hochberg. “The food waste that we collectively generate impacts us socially, environmentally, and economically.”
