This Year’s Super Bowl Filled 70,000 Plates on the Path to Zero Waste

Food Recovery Challenge, food waste, Kick the waste, recycle, recycling, super bowl, waste, Waste Not, Zero Waste Even 3 Comments

This post is a follow-up to my “AZ I See It” column in the Arizona Republic on January 26, 2015.

This year during the Super Bowl, the first “Kick the Waste” campaign took place at Super Bowl Central—the 12-block area in the heart of downtown Phoenix where thousands enjoyed parties and live music in the week leading up to the championship game. The city was host to quite a party on Superbowl Sunday. Fans gathered for good football and good food, whether they joined in the downtown celebrations, tailgated outside the stadium, or ordered from vendors in the stands.

All too often, what’s not consumed goes to waste. Every year Americans throw away more food than any other type of waste — almost 35 million tons — and much of it is still edible. The “Kick the Waste” campaign — a collaboration between the city of Phoenix, nonprofit food rescue organization Waste Not, the National Football League, the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee, vendors and fans — worked to make sure that any leftover food was shared with those who needed a good meal, and any waste was disposed of in the most beneficial way for the environment.

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Jan 31, 2014

The Greenest Super Bowl Ever?

broncos, giants, Judith Enck, metlife stadium, New York, NFL, Region 2, seahawks, super bowl 1 Comment

Everything about the Super Bowl is big – the athletes, the media coverage, the prices for hotels. It’s also a big opportunity to help the environment by using as little energy as possible. The NFL and MetLife Stadium in New Jersey have seized the opportunity by making this the greenest Super Bowl ever.

MetLife Stadium, home of the New York Jets and the New York Giants – and host to this year’s Super Bowl – is a model of green design. It is the most energy-efficient football stadium in the US, according to the Alliance to Save Energy.

And EPA has been involved from the very beginning. While the stadium was being built, EPA signed a memorandum of understanding with the stadium’s owner outlining a plan to build and operate the new stadium as a green building.

The Super Bowl wouldn’t be the Super Bowl without food, and the NFL and MetLife Stadium are making sure that leftover food doesn’t go to waste. The NFL plans to donate unused food to local soup kitchens, shelters and churches, which will feed the hungry while keeping food waste from being shipped to landfills and incinerators.