Food Rescue
Wayside is a hub for donors and a network of smaller partner agencies. Through Food Rescue, Wayside collects and redistributes donated food to programs across Southern Maine. Beyond fighting hunger, Food Rescue reduces food waste entering landfills.
With the amazing support from various partnerships, our Food Rescue Program salvages food from grocery stores, wholesalers, farms, shipping companies, and other food establishments that is still edible but unsellable for cosmetic reasons, packaging imperfections, or inventory levels. Wayside redirects the donated food to 60 soup kitchens, food pantries, and other social service agencies across Southern Maine. When these smaller agencies receive donations that exceed their need or storage capacity, Wayside facilitates the redistribution to others, reducing waste and duplication of effort.
Wayside operates as a hub within a network of existing food distribution organizations.
In 2023, Wayside Food Programs kept 1,000,000 lbs of food from entering landfills.
Most of that food was redirected to economically vulnerable community members across Cumberland County. Wayside also partners with local livestock farmers, and employs Agri-Cycle, a food waste collection service that converts packaged food and scraps into bio-gas.
The donations to our Food Rescue Program are made possible thanks to the incredible generosity from:
Photo by: Maine Coast Fisherman’s Association
Local Food
Please take a moment to learn about the amazing partnerships we have with local food agencies.
Click on the links below.
To support or learn more about Food Rescue:
Don Morrison
Operations Manager
(207) 712-4929
“Wayside is blessed with people who go out of their way to help us with our mission. The warehouse of donated foods, with coolers and freezers, is incredibly well organized. Fast, efficient, and with such good humor and camaraderie, that it’s FUN, our spirits lifted, and our hearts graced by their generosity. Our pantry would not survive without them.”
- Fran & Sue, Coordinators, First Baptist Church Food Pantry