We are Abound Food Care
Our Mission
We optimize food systems to create healthy, food secure communities.
Our Vision
A world in which hunger and food waste are eliminated.
Our Values
Food Care
Food that passes through our hands, and those of our partners, is treated with respect and handled with care, so that it maintains its high intrinsic value and fulfills its intended purpose: to feed people. We educate and support other organizations and individuals how to do the same.
Impact
Every day we make decisions with an understanding of the short-term impact we have on people’s lives without losing sight of achieving our long-term goal of sparking a national movement that can take better care of our communities and planet.
Ingenuity
Solving the critical challenges we face requires a willingness to disrupt conventions of the past by considering new viewpoints, inspiring new ways of thinking, and creating new solutions that improve communities.
Connectivity
Our success is reliant on our ability to bring people together, both our own team and our partners from the public, private, and non-profit sectors. We rely on all participants, look for commonalities to break down silos, and utilize people’s strengths to fill gaps.
Empathy
In addressing hunger and food insecurity we find value in serving others while showing respect and understanding for everyone we encounter. We not only provide solutions we are advocates for others.
Passion
We love what we do, understand the importance of our mission, and are motivated by the enjoyment that comes from the results and impact. We work together through obstacles and celebrate our shared accomplishments along the way.
Accountability
Each one of us is responsible for our actions, effective use of time, and our results. We honor our commitments, both as a team and as individuals, with timely and quality deliverables. We are proactive with open and honest communications to those that are relying on us.
Abound Food Care has worked with over
40 Jurisdictions
assisting with implementation of effective food care programs.
Food Care:
the active and passionate
protection of food, its processes,
cost, and impact.
Our History
In 2012, two visionary leaders, Dr. Eric Handler, then the Orange County (CA) Public Health Officer, and Mark Lowry, Director of the Orange County Food Bank, started Abound Food Care, then known as Waste Not OC, on the premise that if we could capture edible food that is wasted and direct it to people in need, we could end hunger in the community. Starting as a sponsored fiscal project, the organization was a nonprofit/public/private partnership focused on ending food insecurity by connecting local companies, agencies, and volunteers.
Deeply rooted in Food Care
Today, Abound Food Care, a registered 501(C)3 corporation, is focused on building a national movement bringing together nonprofit, public, and private partners to eliminate food waste and food insecurity. We believe in the beauty and value of food and that Food Care is the answer for feeding all of America, while protecting our environment and building healthier communities.
Learn more about the driving force
of Abound Food Care!