A CITIZEN'S GUIDE TO FOOD RECOVERY

I. An Introduction to Food Recovery

Food recovery is the collection of wholesome food for distribution to the poor and hungry. It follows a basic humanitarian ethic that has been part of societies for centuries. We know that "gleaning," or gathering after the harvest, goes back at least as far as biblical days. Today, however, the terms "gleaning" and "food recovery" cover a variety of different efforts. The four most common methods are:

1. Field Gleaning — The collection of crops from farmers' fields that have already been mechanically harvested or on fields where it is not economically profitable to harvest.
2. Perishable Food Rescue or Salvage — The collection of perishable produce from wholesale and retail sources.
3. Food Rescue — The collection of prepared foods from the food service industry.
4. Nonperishable Food Collection — The collection of processed foods with long shelf lives.

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