A&W Canada announced Monday a national expansion of their in-restaurant food rescue program in partnership with Second Harvest, Canada’s largest food rescue organization.
To date, 441 A&W Restaurants across Canada have joined the Second Harvest Food Rescue App. More restaurants are expected to join soon, enabling community groups such as food banks, shelters, meal programs and community centres to pick up surplus food donations from restaurants. These groups then transform A&W’s protein and produce into nourishing meals such as soups, salads, and wraps—for those facing food insecurity. Through food donations from A&W’s supply chain and restaurants, over 1.24 million meals have been provided for communities in need, the company said in a news release.
“A&W and Second Harvest’s partnership reflects a shared commitment to environmental sustainability and community support. A report by Second Harvest indicates that nearly 42% of all the food wasted in Canada could be rescued to help combat hunger among the 8.7 million Canadians experiencing food insecurity. To date, A&W’s food rescue efforts with Second Harvest have prevented 4.8 million pounds of greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere,” it said.
A&W’s partnership with Second Harvest began in 2021, with 81 participating restaurants. The initiative has organically grown, with more A&W Restaurants joining the program to support their local communities.
“Our restaurants are able to thrive because of the support from the community. Their teams have found this program incredibly rewarding, to see how their food rescue efforts can give back,” said Susan Senecal, CEO of A&W Canada. “As a restaurant, our core purpose is to feed people, and this program allows us to extend that to those facing hunger.”
To date, A&W’s food rescue efforts have donated meals to 987 non-profit organizations across Canada.
A&W said it has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to achieving zero-waste operations through initiatives such as responsible ingredient sourcing and sustainable packaging solutions.
“Donating surplus edible food is not only the right thing to do—it’s also an environmentally-sound choice. Distributing food to those in need reduces food-related greenhouse gas emissions by 12 times compared to composting, and 30 times compared to upcycling. Partnerships with major restaurants like A&W, who generously donate their surplus food, are invaluable in our mission to combat food waste and food insecurity in Canada,” said Lori Nikkel, CEO of Second Harvest.
“At A&W, we’ve been committed to achieving zero-waste efforts operationally, and minimizing food waste is a key part of that commitment,” said Angela Griffiths, Vice President of Food Safety and Brand Integrity, who leads A&W’s zero-waste initiatives. “Our office and restaurants are proud to partner with Second Harvest to ensure that our surplus food directly benefits those in need, especially during these challenging economic times.”
A&W is Canada’s original burger chain with over 1000+ restaurants.
Second Harvest is Canada’s largest food rescue organization and a global thought leader on food waste and perishable food redistribution. It rescues unsold surplus food from thousands of food businesses from across the supply chain to redistribute it to non-profits in every province and territory. This prevents harmful greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere while improving access to nutrition for millions of Canadians experiencing food insecurity.
Beyond food rescue and redistribution, Second Harvest is deeply involved in advocacy, research, training and education. Its groundbreaking reports, such as “The Avoidable Crisis of Food Waste,” provide critical data and insights to inform public policy and educate the public on sustainable food systems.
Related Retail Insider articles:
