Image by melGreenFR from Pixabay
Food waste accounts for 8% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, and the average family of four in America spends $1,600 per year on food that goes to waste. But, fortunately, here in the Rogue Valley we have several organizations that are working to change those statistics.
The Southern Oregon Food Solutions (SOFS) mission is to minimize food waste in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The group believes that we can each do our share to reduce food waste whether we are in our homes or in restaurants, and its members are providing services and educational opportunities to assist us in doing so and by working in our community to inspire action toward sustainable food production, use, and disposal.
SOFS efforts focus on three main areas:
- reducing and preventing food waste, including composting to keep it out of landfills
- promoting local, sustainably grown food
- and, addressing food surpluses
Toward this first goal, SOFS has been promoting a free service by accepting food waste scraps at the Tuesday Ashland Growers Market since 2022. Market goers bring food scraps to the market where Rogue Produce / Community Compost collects and transports them to local farms to use as compost and animal feed.
SOFS has joined with this service and with Ashland Community Composting to form the Community Compost Coalition.
By helping local farmers, the Coalition is increasing local resilience, building community, strengthening the local economy, restoring soil health and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The Coalition also recently added the composting service at the Bellview Grange, 1050 Tolman Creek Drive, Ashland, for a small fee. To find out more about this service, send an email to info@southernoregonfoodsolutions.org.
New Medford Free Food Scrap Drop Site Service
In March, the Coalition began accepting food waste scraps at the Thursday Medford Growers Market at Hawthorne Park.
More and more communities throughout the country are committing to converting food waste into compost in order to reduce the need for artificial fertilizers and to prevent the environmental problems that happen when food waste goes to landfills or into water treatment facilities. SOFS has provided many tips for reducing personal food waste, donating food, composting, reducing packaging waste and reducing commercial food waste here.
More ways to get involved:
Learn Easy Bokashi Composting at Home – Next Week!
The Ashland Public Library is hosting a Bokashi composting class from 4 to 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 18. The program will be presented by Magdalena Winter, program manager for Ashland Community Composting. Winter, who studied permaculture design and biodynamic agriculture, will demonstrate how to effectively and efficiently compost household food scraps, the microorganisms involved in Bokashi composting, and the importance of keeping food scraps out of landfills. Register for the free workshop here.
Your Input is Needed for Community Food Assessment Survey
Rogue Valley Food System Network and several community partners, are collecting and evaluating information to identify current assets and gaps in the food system, with a focus on food access, food as medicine, community outreach, education, market and production growth, and climate resilient farming.
This assessment will inform a food action plan, contributing to economic and infrastructural improvements for the region over the next ten years. If you eat, grow, buy or sell food in the Rogue Valley, they are looking for your input! Upon completing the survey, you will have the opportunity to enter a raffle for a chance to win raffle prizes, including a one-night stay at the Ashland Springs Hotel. Take this short survey.
The Rogue Valley Food System Network fosters connections to promote equitable food access, ecologically sound agricultural practices and economic vitality.