At Very Local, we like to pride ourselves on having a pretty good pulse on what’s happening right here in sunny Pittsburgh.

We point you toward breweries. We recommend coffee shops. We poke around at the new restaurants. We sift through events and pick our favorites.

But beyond just food and drink, Very Local connects you with your community. This includes opportunities to volunteer.

Enter 412 Food Rescue: a Pittsburgh non-profit our team has been fond of since its inception.  412 Food Rescue has collaborated with some of our favorite places to eat and drink. But there was one thing our team had NEVER done: an actual 412 Food Rescue.

The Food Rescue Hero mobile app makes volunteering a snap. It was high time for us to buckle down and do our duty.

412 Food Rescue: Saving good food from the waste stream

https://www.facebook.com/412FoodRescue/photos/a.626308164135641/1635178929915221/?type=3&theater

The 412 Food Rescue mission is simple: take perishable, perfectly good food and “rescue” it before it hits a trash can.

412 Food Rescue has a mobile app, that makes it easy for Pittsburghers to help rescue food. The Food Rescue Hero App directs volunteers to businesses where food is about to be thrown out. Before the food hits the waste stream, the “Food Rescue Heroes” swoop in and pick up the food then immediately transport it to receiving organizations around the city who are tasked with combatting food insecurity.

And voila! Instead of becoming trash, perfectly good food is consumed within a day or two. Best of all, 412 Food Rescue doesn’t have to worry about storage or inventory. All “rescued” food is redistributed moments after it is picked up. Genius.

ICYMI: all ticket sales from our $8 Skate Date last weekend were donated to 412 Food Rescue. We’re proud to be working with such a robust, impactful group of people.

VIDEO CREDIT: Cole Bradley