How “Community Fridges” Can Help People in Need and Reduce Waste

In the United States alone, 119 billion pounds of food is wasted each year according to the non-profit organization Feeding America. Yet, over 44 million Americans go hungry every day. If this seems like a huge disparity, that’s because it is. Food waste not only affects the world’s ability to adequately nourish its entire population but also contributes to climate change causing emissions. This is due both to the process of growing and distributing the food and to the off gasses that food emits as it breaks down. However, several New York City communities have implemented an ingenious way to reduce food waste – community fridges.

Source: FOX 5 New York/YouTube

These fridges represent a grassroots way to increase access to food and combat food waste. The community fridge offers a way for people to give fresh food that they will not eat to others who need it. They can be found in select communities throughout the world but first surfaced in New York City during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. These community fridges offered a ray of hope to people who were struggling to afford (or find) food during supply chain issues and rising food prices. Now, the idea of the community fridge has spread. These fridges, also known as “freedges”, “friendly fridges”, and “love fridges”, can be found in cities throughout the United States.

Community fridges offer a relatively anonymous way for food that would otherwise be wasted to be redistributed. However, another wonderful effect of reducing food waste is the ability to reduce emissions that contribute to Climate change. As food decomposes in landfills, it releases methane. Methane is a gas that has ten times the warming properties of carbon dioxide. This means that food waste is responsible for up to ten percent of global emissions– which is a pretty large number! Placing food that would otherwise go uneaten in a community fridge can help to reduce these emissions. 

Although there are some negative side effects of community fridges, their benefits usually outweigh their negatives. Volunteers clean and maintain the fridges. Some community fridge nonprofits even use renewable energy to power the refrigerators. Although the community fridge may be abused by some (like the person in Austin who removed a community fridge and used it to keep their beer cold), these instances are rare. According to the organizations that run community fridge programs, most people are respectful of them. However, there are a few guidelines to follow. Do not put rotten or putrefied food in a community fridge. Additionally, half-eaten food does not belong in a community fridge. Many community fridges also ask that you label donations with the date they were left, ingredients, and potential allergens. 

Sign this petition to Help Reduce Food Waste!

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• Vegan Bodega Helps Communities in Need
• 200 Major Food Companies Commit to Reducing Food Waste

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

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