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Food Donation Connection facts for kids

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Food Donation Connection, LLC
LLC
Founded 1992
Founder Bill Reighard
Headquarters
Knoxville, Tennessee
,
US
Area served
 Worldwide
Key people
 Bill Reighard, President
Services Coordination of prepared, perishable food donations
Owner Bill Reighard
Number of employees
 40 (2012)

Food Donation Connection (FDC) is a company based in Knoxville, Tennessee. It helps restaurants and other food businesses donate their extra food. This food would otherwise be thrown away.

FDC connects these businesses with local groups that help people in need. Their main goal is to make sure good food doesn't go to waste. Instead, it helps feed people who are hungry.

Bill Reighard, a former restaurant boss, started FDC in 1992. The company works from its main office in Knoxville. They also have a special call center called Harvest Support.

FDC helps food businesses set up programs to donate their extra prepared food. This gives them a better choice than just throwing it out.

FDC helps arrange donations from many places. These include restaurants, college campuses, airports, and hospitals. They connect these donors with food rescue groups. These groups are located across the United States, Canada, and some other countries.

In 2011, FDC helped donate a huge amount of food. They coordinated 35 million pounds of extra prepared food. This came from 248 food businesses, including 13,880 restaurants. This food went to 7,908 local groups that fight hunger.

FDC also helps the groups that receive food. They find out what these groups need. Then, they connect them with businesses that can donate extra food. This way, the groups can focus on their main mission. They don't have to spend time getting and preparing food.

FDC does not ask for money from the government or other groups. Instead, they get their funding from the tax savings of donor partners. When businesses donate food properly, they can get tax benefits. This helps FDC keep its services going.

Donating food helps businesses in many ways. They can help their local communities. It also builds good feelings about the company. Employees feel better about their work. Plus, it can reduce their carbon footprint. This means they help the environment by creating less waste.

The Harvest Support Network (HSN) used to be a non-profit group. FDC created it to help the food recipient groups. However, HSN no longer takes public donations. It is also no longer a 501(c)(3) charity. FDC and other groups now handle these support activities. This change happened because raising money for HSN was too much work. It didn't make sense to keep its non-profit status.

HSN's goal is to give tools and help to food banks and other charities. This lets them focus on their main goals. HSN provides training, scheduling, and tracking systems. These tools help groups match their needs with volunteers. This makes charities more effective in their work.

Working Together to Fight Hunger

This section explains how FDC works with other groups. They team up to reduce food waste and help people.

Helping Restaurants Reduce Waste

In 2009, FDC started working with the National Restaurant Association. They wanted to teach people about other ways to handle extra food. Both groups want to stop hunger and reduce food waste in America.

FDC also supports laws that help food donation. One important law is the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Act of 1996. This law protects people and businesses who donate food in good faith. It means they won't get in trouble if something goes wrong. FDC also supports tax laws that encourage more food donations.

Companies That Donate Food

As of 2012, FDC helps 248 companies with their food donation programs. These include many well-known restaurants and food service businesses. Some of them are:

Groups That Receive Food

As of 2012, FDC helps over 7,900 local groups get healthy, prepared food. These groups are very different. They include:

  • Homeless shelters
  • Teen homes
  • After-school programs
  • Crisis shelters for women and children
  • Soup kitchens
  • Emergency food pantries
  • Food rescue organizations

See also

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