A volunteer-powered network is rescuing thousands of pounds of fresh, nutritious food from landfills each week and delivering it directly to people in need across the greater Lansing area.
Food Rescue US — Lansing Communities operates as a direct-transfer model using a smartphone app. Volunteers claim rescues, pick up surplus perishable food from commercial donors and deliver it the same day to social service agencies, all within a short 20- to 30-minute window to ensure freshness and food safety.
Valerie Lafferty, the site director and a volunteer with the group, said the organization, which launched from scratch about 2.5 years ago and serves Ingham, Eaton and Clinton counties, now has around 170 volunteers. They coordinate via an app that provides pickup and drop-off details, tracks the type and weight of food rescued, and calculates environmental impact…