Goal 2:
Environmental Stewardship
What it means & What We Can Do
Outcome 2.2
Reduce Food-Related Carbon Emissions
Outcome 2.1
Improve Edible Food Waste Recovery
200,000 Tons
Of food scraps in the Portland Metro are being sent to landfills, while only 28,000 tons are being recycled
5.44 Metric Tons
Of CO2 emissions prevented by Portland Fruit Tree Project harvests in 2024
Over 100,000 lbs.
Of methane diverted in 2023 by Urban Gleaners in their food recovery efforts
1 Metric Ton
Of CO2 prevented by LiftUP's compost program between May 2025 - September 2025
72% Decrease
In number of farms in the U.S. since 1935. Meanwhile, the average size of farms has nearly tripled
40,000 Acres
Of Oregon farmland lost in since 1980
Turning Food Waste into Climate Action
Since 2006, Urban Gleaners has rescued over 11 million pounds of food from being thrown away in landfills, where it decomposes and creates harmful methane gas. This 11 million pounds is equal to the impact of over 1400 households' electricity consumption, or nearly 1700 cars , over the course of one year. Similarly, the Portland Fruit Tree Project's rescued over 15,000 pounds of fruit in 2024. Gleaning food which would otherwise be sent to landfills is one of the simplest and most effective ways to combat hunger and climate change!
When Food Can’t Be Eaten, It Still Feeds the System
But what about the rescued food that isn't fit for human consumption? In 2025, Lift UP adopted a composting program following Urban Gleaners' best practices. Both Lift UP and Urban Gleaners donate the food waste which isn't fit for humans to local farmers who feed this additional food waste to their pigs and other animals. Building a network of local farmers and food rescuers helps to build a healthier, more resilient, and more climate friendly local food system.
