Rescuing Food
Food Recovery Network at Merrimack College is part of the national Food Recovery Network, a nonprofit organization that partners with on-campus dining services to rescue unserved, usable food.
Food Recovery Network is the largest student movement fighting food waste and hunger in America.
About Food Recovery Network
Merrimack’s chapter of the Food Recovery Network recovers perishable food that would otherwise go to waste from our campus dining halls and donates it to those in need. We are located at Hands to Help in Lawrence and the College is currently building a kitchen on-site for full operations.
Food recoveries are the essence of what the Food Recovery Network program is about. Food recoveries unite our College students with our FRN student workers with the purpose of visiting Merrimack’s main kitchen to rescue unserved, usable food that would otherwise go to waste.
A regular food recovery shift consists of gathering all the food left for the day at Merrimack’s dining hall and packing it into individual containers that get delivered out to those in need in neighboring communities and/ or to multiple student lounges at the college.
Student volunteers have the opportunity to learn basic food safety guidelines and principles from our ServSafe-certified student workers and the Sodexo professionals that we work with. Students also have the opportunity to put into practice theories learned in their nutrition related courses
How It Works
Food Recovery
Each week, our volunteers collect wholesome but unused food. This effort reduces waste for donors, lowers costs for our meal recipients and decreases the environmental burden associated with food disposal.
Meal Preparation
We prepare family-style meals for more than 30 people each week.
Meal Delivery
We provide to hunger relief organizations, low-income families and individuals throughout the surrounding community.
Student Programming
Weigh the Waste
We hosted this fun and interactive event to engage students in understanding how much plate waste an individual can produce at the end of a meal. Our goal was to promote more conscious consumption and to create food waste awareness among Merrimack College students, faculty and staff.
Food Drive
We donated food collected to non-profits in surrounding communities whose purpose is to fight food insecurity.
Wasted: The Story of Food Waste
We hosted a screening of the documentary called Wasted: The Story of Food Waste.
Join Us
Would you like to volunteer with us and help make a difference in our community? As a volunteer, you’ll get out of the classroom and get hands-on experience working with food and the local community. You’ll also meet other students, collaborate with other campus clubs, sponsor social events and participate in Mack Gives Back.
