Solving Hunger & Saving the Planet

It’s estimated that one billion pounds of good, healthy food ends up in Wisconsin’s landfills from businesses each year. Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin saves that food from being wasted by getting it into the hands of neighbors in need instead. We connect people and food in a number of ways, and The MealConnect program uses technology to save even more food from ending up in landfills instead of home cupboards and refrigerators.

MealConnect creates relationships between donors who have excess food and the Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin pantry partners who help distribute to those who need food. For food donors and pantries, connecting is now as easy as downloading the MealConnect app. Here’s how it works.

A company may refuse a shipment from a truck driver simply because the boxes got slightly damaged while in transit. While the food inside the box is still perfectly good, it will go to waste if no one takes it. With MealConnect, the truck driver can post that food as a donation item on the app. Once it is vetted and accepted by Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin as safe and high-quality, the driver delivers the product to the food bank or a network pantry partner.

When a food donor posts excess food on the MealConnect app and it is approved by Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin, it automatically determines pantry partners in the area that have the capacity to accept the donation. This allows fresh food to go directly from the store to the pantries, reducing time in transit, saving days of shelf life, and ensuring it reaches where the need is greatest.

Kroger’s Zero Hunger Zero Waste has helped support some of the work being done to grow the MealConnect program. “This innovative program couldn’t have come at a more critical time as the last two years have been difficult ones for food banks and pantries due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” states James Hyland, VP of Communications & Public Affairs of Roundy’s.

“As a long-time supporter of Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin, we are excited to see the benefits MealConnect will have in better serving those who are food insecure.”
Volunteers can use MealConnect, too. If a donation is posted but a pantry is not available to pick up the product, a volunteer can step in instead. Similar to Uber or Lyft, drivers choose when they want to volunteer their time and what trips they’d like to make to deliver food to pantries.

“This gives us the opportunity to expand our volunteerism across our entire footprint,” explains Carey Redmann, Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin Business Development Manager. “An individual who wants to volunteer with our organization who doesn’t live near our warehouses in Milwaukee or Appleton can still get involved.”

By connecting our volunteers, donors, and pantries, we are working together more cohesively to solve hunger.