Grades 8-12
Tutorial 3. Feed people, not landfills
Food insecurity
Do you ever find yourself irritable and unfocused as your stomach starts rumbling? For many people, they can simply fix that hunger with a snack or meal and carry on with our day. However, there are many people in our country who do not have enough food or do not know where their next meal will come from. This means they are experiencing food insecurity. Studies of hunger in America show that there are over 35 million people throughout the United States who do not have enough food to eat right now. In Oceanside, one in five residents and as many as one in two kids are considered food insecure.
Do you ever find yourself irritable and unfocused as your stomach starts rumbling? For many people, they can simply fix that hunger with a snack or meal and carry on with our day. However, there are many people in our country who do not have enough food or do not know where their next meal will come from. This means they are experiencing food insecurity. Studies of hunger in America show that there are over 35 million people throughout the United States who do not have enough food to eat right now. In Oceanside, one in five residents and as many as one in two kids are considered food insecure.
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Forty percent of the food produced for human consumption in the United States does not get eaten.
In Tutorial #1 “What’s On Your Plate?” you learned about the environmental impacts of food waste. Wasting uneaten food is even more harmful when that food could supply people with wholesome, quality nutrition and improve food security in our community. |
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Food recovery
An important step to reducing hunger in America is to use food recovery, which is the practice of collecting good, uneaten food and providing it to people in need. This does not mean you should donate your half-eaten sandwich or apple. Food recovery is more about getting uneaten food to those who need it. If you experience food insecurity yourself, there are resources available to you and your family to ensure you can access healthful, wholesome food whenever you need it.
An important step to reducing hunger in America is to use food recovery, which is the practice of collecting good, uneaten food and providing it to people in need. This does not mean you should donate your half-eaten sandwich or apple. Food recovery is more about getting uneaten food to those who need it. If you experience food insecurity yourself, there are resources available to you and your family to ensure you can access healthful, wholesome food whenever you need it.
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This does not mean you should donate your half-eaten sandwich or apple, but rather you should support connecting edible, uneaten food to those who can benefit in your community. Additionally, if you experience food insecurity yourself, know that there are resources available to you and your family to ensure you can access healthful, wholesome food whenever you need it.
Currently, the City of Oceanside is working to combat food insecurity through its Green Oceanside Kitchen. Opened in 2019, this state-of-the-art food recovery and preservation facility is operated in partnership with the O’side Kitchen Collaborative and accepts edible food donations. Chefs use this food, as well as agricultural surplus from nearby farms that cannot sell their produce because of irregular appearance or overproduction, to create meals and other “value-added” products like tomato sauces, orange marmalades, and nut-butter bars for everyone to enjoy. Additionally, the Green Oceanside Kitchen provides in-person and virtual cooking workshops and zero waste education to help you become a zero waste champion for your home and community. Learn more about the Green Oceanside Kitchen by visiting the City website. There are also resources throughout San Diego County that work hard to connect edible, wholesome food from grocery stores and some restaurants with nearby food pantries where people can go to get food whenever they need it. Feeding San Diego and the North County Food Bank provide consistent pantry staples and fresh produce to local food pantries throughout Oceanside. 
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1. Support local Oceanside businesses and Green Oceanside Business Members 2. Volunteer at a food bank or distribution event. 3. Participate in or organize a food drive with your friends, neighbors, or other students to collect and donate food to a local pantry. 4. Find ways to volunteer all year round, not just during the holiday season 5. Hold a fundraiser. Organizations that help feed people need money to pay employees to buy equipment. |
Tutorial Challenge
Explore Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap to learn more about food insecurity in San Diego County.
- Find food pantries in your area by doing a quick search.
- Take an inventory of non-perishable food in your home that you would like to donate.
- Donate those items to a nearby food pantry.
- Visit your nearby grocery store.
- Ask them what they do with any food that is not purchased.
- Write a letter asking them to donate uneaten food items (if they don’t already).
