StopWaste is offering a total of $1.1 million in grant funding to businesses, nonprofits, institutions, and school districts in Alameda County for projects focused on focus on waste prevention, reuse, and recovery of food, goods and materials as well as development, marketing, and products made with recovered materials. Deadline to apply is March 14, 2024.

 

Going beyond waste prevention, grant funding is designed to support efforts that boost resilient community food systems and reduce our negative impact on the environment.

 

"Here in Alameda County we are fortunate to have so much initiative, innovation and wisdom at the community level to guide projects that not only prevent waste but at the same time address equity, economic opportunities, and community health. The grant program is designed to support and advance this important work," said Timothy Burroughs, StopWaste’s Executive Director.

 

Details about the grant categories can be found below and at www.stopwaste.org/grants. The website also offers details about grant eligibility and requirements, a list of past grant-funded projects, an informational webinar, and StopWaste Grant Staff office hours and contacts.

 

The six grant categories are:

 

Food Waste Prevention & Recovery (up to $30,000 per grant)

These grants prevent edible food from going to compost or landfill by recovering and redistributing it to nourish people, or by preventing the production of surplus edible food through product or process redesign. Sample project: Oakland Communities United for Equity and Justice, recovers surplus food from various food establishments and redistributes it via their Free Food Stand to low-income and unhoused community members. Their Cook Program trainees turn some of the food into nutritious hot meals, learning cooking and food handling skills in the process.

 

Reuse & Repair (up to $25,000 per grant)

These grants fund innovative projects that prevent waste through reuse, repair, deconstruction, redistribution, product or process redesign, and other methods of recovery, conserving natural resources while stimulating economic activity in the reuse and recovery sectors. Sample project: The non-profit Tech Exchange, collects decommissioned technology devices, refurbishes them, and distributes them to households across the Bay Area to close the digital divide.

 

Surplus Food Donation Equipment (up to $10,000 per grant)

These grants provide funding for storage, transportation and other equipment to support the recovery or donation of surplus edible food that would otherwise go to waste. Sample project: The Alameda Food Bank purchased a new glass door freezer unit enabling them to recover an additional 13,130 pounds of frozen food items. The unit also allows the Food Bank’s clients to select their own frozen items, resulting in a more dignified shopping experience.

 

Reusable Transport Packaging Equipment (up to $10,000 per grant)

These grants fund reusable, durable alternatives to replace limited-life packaging used in manufacturing, transportation and/or distribution, such as boxes, pallets, pallet wraps, and dunnage. Sample project: Elder Care Alliance purchased reusable pallet wraps to replace disposable plastic wrap used to secure pallets of groceries for transport to senior facilities through Alameda County. The reusable wraps eliminate the purchase and disposal of over 27,000 pounds of plastic wrap each year.

 

Community Food Systems (up to $10,000 per grant)

These grants support locally focused projects that prevent food waste while improving food access, equity, economic opportunity, and community health. Sample project: Goodness Village in Livermore, a tiny home community for people transitioning out of chronic homelessness,purchased equipment to store and process recovered, surplus food to feed the Village and teaches residents to make jams, preserves, and other upcycled food products for sale, with proceeds coming back to support the Village.

 

Reusable Foodware Infrastructure ($5,000 to $25,000 per grant)

These grants fund innovative projects that replace single-use, disposable foodware with reusable systems with the goal of developing local infrastructure for reusable foodware systems. Sample project: Several school districts in the county, in partnership with Center for Environmental Health, replaced disposable lunch trays, food boats, and plastic sporks with reusable stainless-steel ones. Some school districts set up infrastructure to wash the dishes in-house while others use off-site dishwashing services.

 

For more information about our Waste Prevention grant program, contact Meri Soll at msoll@stopwaste.org.