Denver International Airport Receives Grant to Expand Food Donation Program
Denver International Airport (DEN) is expanding its food donation program after being awarded a $20,313 grant by the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment.
The grant, which was awarded to DEN through the Recycling Resources Economic Opportunity (RREO) grant program, is being used to purchase eight new coolers to store food donated by participating airport concessions.
The airport in late 2015 launched a pilot program in which participating airport concessions and flight kitchens could donate leftover prepared entrees, side dishes, prepackaged salads and sandwiches, sealed beverages, condiment packets, canned goods and other items that are then picked up by Metro Caring – a leading Colorado hunger relief program.
Previously, the airport was relying on two coolers on loan from United Airlines to store these items. But with more than 58,200 pounds of food donated in 2016, the existing coolers were often overflowing and presented a logistical challenge for some companies. The new coolers will be installed on all three concourses and near the Jeppesen Terminal, allowing easier access for participating concessionaires. The new equipment also expands the program’s storage capacity from 92 cubic feet to 460 cubic feet.
“Denver International Airport is committed to all aspects of sustainability, including social responsibility through community partnerships,” airport CEO Kim Day said. “It is wonderful to see that our food donation program has become so successful that our coolers have been overflowing with donations from our generous business partners. By expanding this impactful program, we will be able to support even more Colorado families in need while reducing our environmental footprint. This is indeed a true win-win program!”
Current participating concessions and flight kitchens include: Ayala’s, Provenzano, Delaware North Companies, LSG Sky Chefs, Paradies, Mission Yogurt, Tastes 5280, United Airlines Chelsea Food Services, Avila Retail, Simplicity USA and the Marshall Retail Group.
