Commercial Surplus Food: Data & Extraordinary Successes
Our team presented to the City of Encinitas Environmental Commission about SB1383 and how Solana Center is helping businesses prevent food waste. Executive Director Jessica Toth, Associate Manager Larissa Amaral, and UCSD Scripps Researcher Skylar Enge shared our success in preventing food waste and edible food donations to families in need.
California’s SB 1383 is a groundbreaking law aimed at reducing organic waste in landfills, cutting methane emissions, and increasing food recovery efforts. At Solana Center, we’re working directly with businesses to turn this mandate into action, ensuring edible surplus food reaches those in need rather than going to waste.
Working with the majority of the San Diego region to provide outreach and inspection, Solana Center ensures that donation programs are in place as evidenced by partnership agreements, that there is no intentional spoilage, that proper signage is used, and that problems are addressed.
Through our work, we have helped donate over 6 million meals to families in need! One of Solana Center’s most significant consultations is with Hollandia Dairy. Prior to working with Solana Center they were only donating 2% of their potential and were paying for most of their surplus to be sent off as animal feed.
Since consulting with Solana Center Hollandia has a 98% increase in donations! This resulted in significant savings as Hollandia was no longer paying for their surplus to be sent off as feed.
Hollandia Dairy is just one example of how businesses can transform their food waste practices with the right support. Through our work across San Diego, we’ve helped businesses implement donation programs, prevent intentional spoilage, and ensure surplus food gets to those who need it most. With over 6 million meals donated, the impact is undeniable, but there’s still more to do.
Interested in making a similar impact in your community? Learn how working with Solana Center’s experts can prevent food waste and support families in need. Contact Solana Center today!
Hey there!
Great work on reducing food waste.
During a recent visit to Santa Barbara I picked up a copy of their 2025 GreenGuide which includes “Simple/Smart/Sustinable /Stories”. One particularly caught my eye. A dry cleaners called Ablitt’s has organized collection of clean plastic film. Volunteers sort the collected materials. It’s picked up by a green middle man and then converted back into pellets to be used to manufacture furniture & decking. Another program mentioned was the collection of textiles which are then recycled thru a national co. called Trashie.
I’d like to see your organization get behind programs like this.
Hi Julia, thank you for reaching out. That program sounds amazing!
At our Climate Solutions Hub we host a collection site for Plastic Beach. They are a nonprofit dedicated to promoting and facilitating the responsible recycling of soft plastic packaging waste. Subscribers of their program are able to drop off their soft plastics in our bin to have it be picked up and properly recycled. Here is a link to learn more about the program – https://solanacenter.org/2024/04/12/plastic-bag-recycling-program/
We appreciate your support of Solana Center!