C.A.T © : No Waste FridaY

What is C.A.T.? C.A.T. is a group of 5th Graders who want to solve 2 problems: Food Disparity and Food Waste. These are huge issues in Central Ohio. When we were in 5th grade, We began by researching the 2 issues to uncover facts. Our idea was to collect food items to be donated to Heart to Heart Food Pantry each week. Also, we would help to organize the shelves and products.

Old proposal…NEW proposal We started by forming five main phases: Phase 1- Start Up/Project Managers Phase 2- Community Outreach Phase 3- School Publicity Phase 4- Tech Publicity Phase 5- Partner Appreciation Our Phase 1 group began by researching the issues of food insecurity and food waste to uncover facts. Then we organized a list of restaurants and community places that might be able to help with our project. We talked to representatives from Heart to Heart, and they are excited to work with us. Fortunately many businesses liked our idea, but most businesses were already partnering with other organizations; therefore, they could not work with us. So we then came up with the idea of “No Waste Friday.”

Facts that are Super Important “According to a 2014 EPA study, America throws away more than 38 million tons of food every year. That’s the weight of 104 Empire State Buildings, with a bit to spare. Or, to put it another way, that single year’s worth of food waste would be enough to balance a scale with of all the Blue Whales left in the world, multiplied by 10, stacked up on the other side.” “In the United States, food waste is estimated at between 30-40 percent of the food supply. This estimate, based on estimates from USDA’s Economic Research Service of 31 percent food loss at the retail and consumer levels, corresponded to approximately 133 billion pounds and $161 billion worth of food in 2010. This amount of waste has far-reaching impacts on food security, resource conservation and climate change.”

Facts that are Super important (continued) “More than 525,000 individuals, including 183,750 children and 89,250 seniors, receive emergency food each year through Mid-Ohio Foodbank.” “In any given week, 55% of the clients receive emergency food assistance from a food pantry, soup kitchen, or emergency shelter we serve.” 21% of landfill volume is food waste 21% of fresh water is used to produce food that is then discarded If we were to reduce our food waste by just 20%, we could avoid 18 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions

What is No Waste Friday? “No Waste Friday” is during every lunch period, every Friday. C.A.T. has a table set up in the cafeteria for kids to donate food that they don’t eat or like, that they would have typically just thrown away. The donating takes place throughout each lunch period. Then after the 4th and 5th grade lunch period is over, we load a school van at 12:30, just outside the cafeteria. We rotate 9 fifth grade students each Friday to Heart to Heart Food Pantry. We are back to school by 1:30 pm at the latest.

Us In Action

Social Media! Want to stay up to date with C.A.T? The best way to know what C.A.T is doing is to follow our Twitter! Yes, we have a Twitter. Follow @ghcsd_cat on Twitter! *We actually have Sara Hager run our Twitter, often from her own Twitter account. Please follow @sjk1018

Total donations to date October 2017- present March 2016-2017 4th Grade 77 5th Grade 187 6th Grade 118 7th Grade 18 8th Grade 5 TOTAL 405 4th Grade 153 5th Grade 279 6th Grade 47 7th Grade 28 8th Grade 27 TOTAL 534 Grand Total 939

Works Cited Foodbank, Mid-Ohio. “Hunger Facts.” Mid-Ohio Foodbank, www.midohiofoodbank.org/get_involved/advocacy/hunger-facts/. “How Many People Are Hungry in the World?” World Hunger News, www.worldhunger.org/hunger-quiz/how-many-people-are-hungry-in-the-world/. “Ten Ways Food Waste Hurts the Environment.” Feeding America, www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-blog/ten-ways-food-waste-hurts-the-environment.html.

This initiative was Started Last year by our current 6th graders This initiative was Started Last year by our current 6th graders. This year, the 5th graders are carrying on our work. Other school districts have even asked about our project and would like to borrow our ideas! Heart to Heart Food Pantry is located at 1944 W. First Avenue Columbus, OH 43212