Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Mass. Middle School Launches Program to Reduce Food Waste

  • By Yvonne Marquez
  • 01/08/20

William Diamond Middle School introduced a new food recovery program on Jan. 2 that aims to reduce food waste in Lexington, Massachusetts. The program is a collaboration between Lexington’s Board of Health, the Public Health Department, parent volunteers and Whitsons Culinary Group, a local newspaper reported. It was approved by the Board of Health in August.

Food recovery is the process of saving edible food that would normally be thrown away and is given to food banks, restaurants, and other food distributors. Food waste makes up about 22 percent of all discarded municipal solid waste, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

“What makes it worthwhile is that we’re able to feed hungry people, but also divert that food waste and make a real sustainability effort,” Public Health Director Kari Sasportas told the Lexington Minuteman. “It’s also a good educational opportunity for the kids to learn about sustainability and the whole cycle of food.”

Students at William Diamond Middle School can now drop off lunch items they did not open or eat like yogurt cups, cheese sticks, milk bottles, apples and bananas and drop them off in a fridge located in the cafeteria. The food items will then be donated to Foodlink, an Arlington-based non-profit.

In addition, the school collaborated with Foodlink, Whitsons, and the health department to create new operating procedures for food service workers in the school district.

The Health Department will evaluate the new program at the end of February and will determine whether or not to implement similar programs to the town’s eight other schools.

About the Author

Yvonne Marquez is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Round Rock ISD Completes New Early College High School

    Round Rock ISD near Austin, Texas, recently announced that construction is complete on a new, 46,500-square-foot campus for Early College High School, according to a news release. The new facility will allow the school’s students and staff to move from portables into a permanent building and increase its enrollment to 500.

  • University of Arizona Approves New Residence Hall

    The Arizona Board of Regents recently approved plans for a new residence hall at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Ariz., according to a news release. The new facility is scheduled to open in fall 2028 and have the capacity for more than 1,200 students, enforcing a new university expectation that all first-year students live on campus.

  • Countway Library at Harvard Medical School

    From Shadows to Sanctuary: The Transformation of Light at Countway Library

    The renovation of Countway Library at Harvard Medical School demonstrates how biophilic design and advanced lighting strategies transformed a formerly dark, insular space into a vibrant, welcoming hub that supports wellness, learning, and community engagement.

  • UT System Board of Regents Approves $108M Housing Complex

    The University of Texas System Board of Regents recently announced the approval of a new, $108-million housing complex at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), according to a news release. The facility will stand four stories and have a total of 456 new beds for freshmen students.