Environmental Responsibility and Sustainability

As an organization, we recognize the importance of environmental stewardship and are committed to demonstrating and contributing to efforts that have a positive impact on the environment. By integrating sustainable practices into our operations, we aim to reduce our ecological footprint, champion environmental justice, and inspire others to join us in creating a more sustainable future.

Our Environmental Impact

Our capacity and operations have grown over time which has also resulted in an increase for the amount of food that we rescue. This directly enhances our positive environmental impact.

Food being wasted is particularly harmful for the environment because as the food is decomposing, the lack of oxygen in landfills creates methane, which is “28 times more potent than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere.” This is why Project Drawdown ranks reducing food waste as the #1 most impactful solution for reducing emissions and minimizing the impact of climate change.

Emissions Prevented by Second Helpings

Facility Emissions

While we produce far less emissions than we save from our Food Rescue operations, it is important that we track this information so that we can verify the success of our efficiency measures. This also allows us to see which areas should be targeted for the most potential impacts.

The chart to the right shows the top sources of our emission production. For a more in-depth analysis, view our 2024 Emissions Inventory.

Facility Emissions in 2024

Sustainability Goals

Prioritize Electric Equipment

While electric-powered equipment still has the emissions associated with the power grid, it is over 40% more efficient than gas-powered counterparts. Electrical equipment also removes health and safety risks associated with gas equipment that contribute to asthma, fire risk, gas leaks, dizziness, and headaches (Source: ENERGY STAR, 2024).

Reach and Maintain 50% Diversion Rate

Waste in food rescue programs is inevitable, but diverting it from the landfill reduces its impact. Through composting and recycling, Second Helpings diverted 47.6% of its spoiled food and packaging materials in 2024. In the future, we hope to increase this to 50% then continue to maintain or exceed that rate.