WE HELP DONATE MORE THAN 2 MEALS PER SECOND, EVERY SECOND! CLICK HERE TO VIEW GLOBAL ACTIVITY
About Food Donation Connection
More Than 34 Years of Connecting Surplus Food With People Who Need It
Food Donation Connection was founded in 1992 with a simple idea, found in John 6:12: Let nothing be wasted.
What began with one restaurant company and a vision for a better way to handle surplus food has grown into one of the most experienced food donation program management organizations in the world.
Today, Food Donation Connection (FDC) helps restaurants, grocery retailers, convenience stores, airports, travel and hospitality companies, universities, distribution centers, and other foodservice operations build and manage food donation programs that connect surplus food with qualified nonprofit organizations in communities across the United States and beyond.
But our purpose has remained the same since the beginning:
Let Nothing Be Wasted.
Our Story
It Started With a Better Way
In 1992, former restaurant executive Bill Reighard saw an opportunity to address two problems at the same time.
Restaurants routinely had wholesome prepared food left at the end of the day, while nonprofit organizations in the same communities were working every day to feed people in need.
The food existed.
The need existed.
What was missing was the connection between the two.
Reighard founded Food Donation Connection to create that connection and make food donation practical for large foodservice organizations.
Pizza Hut became FDC's first donor partner, helping establish what would become a national model for recovering surplus prepared food from restaurant locations and directing it to local nonprofit organizations.
From One Donor to a Worldwide Network
What started with one donor partner grew quickly.
FDC demonstrated that prepared and perishable food could be donated safely, consistently, and at scale when the right procedures, nonprofit relationships, training, tracking, and support were in place.
Over the years, FDC expanded beyond restaurants into grocery/ retail, convenience stores, airports, travel centers, hospitality, universities, hospitals, distribution centers, and other foodservice environments
Nearly 2 Billion Pounds—and Counting
Since 1992, FDC has helped coordinate:
We help generate 2 new meals per second, EVERY second!
1.78 Bil
Pounds of food donated
1.40 Bil
Meals Provided
17,896
Participating Locations
12,541
Nonprofits Supported
850k tons
Food Diverted from Disposal
Today, our network connects surplus food from thousands of donor locations with thousands of nonprofit hunger-relief organizations. Every donation represents something more important than a number on a report.
It represents food that didn't go to waste.
It represents a nonprofit with additional resources to serve its community.
And ultimately, it represents food reaching people who can use it.
We Don't Just Connect Donors and Nonprofits
Finding a nonprofit willing to accept food is only the beginning. Successful food donation programs require ongoing management. FDC works behind the scenes every day to keep those programs working—from identifying and vetting nonprofit partners and establishing pickup schedules to resolving missed pickups, answering location questions, monitoring donation activity, maintaining food safety procedures, calculating donation values, and providing reporting and documentation.
Our donor partners have one point of contact for their food donation program, while FDC manages the local relationships and operational details necessary to make the program work.
Technology Helps Manage the Data.
People Manage the Program.
Technology has always been an important part of what we do, but food donation ultimately involves people.
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Store managers.
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Food Service teams.
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Nonprofit drivers.
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Food safety professionals.
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Finance and tax departments.
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Sustainability teams.
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And the people receiving the food.
That's why FDC combines technology and data with experienced people and our Live Answer Support Center. When there's a question or problem, there's someone to call.
Experience That Matters
After more than three decades, FDC has encountered virtually every challenge that can arise in a large-scale food donation program.
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We've worked with single locations and organizations operating thousands of locations.
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We've coordinated routine local pickups and large-volume distribution center donations.
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We've helped companies develop food safety procedures, establish reporting systems, manage nonprofit relationships, calculate donation values, and build programs that can grow across markets and across the country.
That experience allows us to do more than tell organizations that they should donate surplus food. We help them figure out how to make it work.
Our Mission
Our mission is to expand the network connecting available sources of surplus food with people in need through existing charitable organizations.
We believe wholesome food should be put to its highest and best use.
For more than 34 years, that belief has guided our company, our relationships with donor partners, and our relationships with the nonprofit organizations serving communities every day.
Our History Continues with Every Donation
From one donor partner in 1992 to a network spanning thousands of locations today, Food Donation Connection has grown considerably.
But the idea behind the company hasn't changed.
Let Nothing Be Wasted.
